


Arrivals and Departures

by Name1



Series: Fate Across the Miles [2]
Category: The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Chicago, Chicago Style Pizza, F/M, Falling In Love, Friends to Lovers, Getting to know you, Late Night Phone Calls, Phone Sex, Slow Burn, Snowstorms, middle-aged texting, the giant Bean
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-17
Updated: 2020-08-17
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:00:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 31,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25955611
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Name1/pseuds/Name1
Summary: The follow up to Missed Connection-- The AU no one asked for but I had to write anyway :DCheryl eyed her suspiciously. She tried putting all the pieces together from her friend's strange behavior--the happiness, the grinning, the phone she wouldn’t let out of her sight...... It was all adding up, but she couldn’t believe it. “Hold up. Did you meet someone?" she asks her, incredulously.“What?” Cara asks, with just a bit too much innocent surprise to be believed. “Come on, Cher, when would I have time to meet someone?”“I don’t know, your last trip?” she guesses. “You seem different.”“Maybe,” Cara says elusively, but there’s a pink color on her cheeks that wasn’t there when she was running sprints a few minutes ago.“Maybe what?” her friend replies.Cara hesitates. “I might have met someone….maybe”
Relationships: Cara Dune/Din Djarin, Cara Dune/The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV)
Series: Fate Across the Miles [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1883059
Comments: 44
Kudos: 70





	1. Getting to Know You

**Author's Note:**

> hope you like the short follow up.   
> Happy reading.

Second week of November. Two weeks after her layover in Chicago

Unbeknownst to Cara, her agent and long-time _almost_ friend had been watching her train alongside a client to demonstrate proper form for quite some time. She was impressed as usual, but her eyebrows furrowed at what happened as soon as their time was up. She watched curiously as Cara all but scurried back to her phone where it sat on a chair when her session was over. _That wasn’t like her at all_ , she thought. Usually between clients, Cara pushed herself hard--training as vigorously as she could squeeze in between appointments…..so what was going on here?

She heard the soft chime of the phone again and watched as Cara’s whole face lit up in a barely suppressed smile just aching to break through. Cara jumped, almost dropping her phone on the gym’s padded floor, when she heard the voice of her agent come out of nowhere. “You seem different…..,” Cheryl said, suspiciously.

Cara quickly wipes the burgeoning smile off her face, and she turns off her phone to address the well-dressed woman in front of her, while putting on an air of nonchalance. “Different, _how_?” she asks, trying and failing to appear unaware of her change in demeanor the last several days.

It might not be visible to most people, but Cheryl had known her for almost fifteen years. While working out, she was usually in the zone. _This was weird…._

Cara was worried she’d be distracted with her mind somewhere else, but she was stronger and oddly more focused as a result of the individual on the other end of the line. She might admit to being a _little_ distracted, but she worked harder than normal so the days would fly by and she could get home to relax and charge her phone while _perhaps_ talking to someone she’d been texting all day. The battery had been running out surprisingly fast the last few days. _That’s funny_ , she thought, _it used to last for days and now it had to be plugged in just after lunch and again at night_.

While she no doubt worked hard all day both training and being the trainer, the periodic breaks were her own and she found herself savoring them as she never had before with her back against a wall as she tried not to smile at the words greeting her on the screen.

Cheryl is still staring at her expectedly as the text comes through and she glances at it out of the corner of her eye. She's trying to pay attention to the woman in front of her, but she can't help grinning at her phone like a loon.

This had become their thing. A text first thing in the morning and the last thing at night, though somehow though they found themselves talking throughout the day as well. 

The messages were sweet and funny and brightened up her day at the most unexpected times, but it was nighttime she really looked forward to when she got to hear his voice--sleepy and soft because of the time difference that worked in her favor.

The chime sounds again, and Cheryl almost laughs at Cara fighting the urge to check her phone.

Cheryl eyed her suspiciously. She tried putting all the pieces together from her friend's strange behavior--the happiness, the grinning, the phone she wouldn’t let out of her sight...... It was all adding up, but she couldn’t believe it. “Hold up. Did you _meet_ someone?" she asks her, incredulously.

“What?” Cara asks, with just a bit too much innocent surprise to be believed. “Come on, Cher, when would I have time to meet someone?”

“I don’t know, your last trip?” she guesses. “You seem different.”

“Maybe,” Cara says elusively, but there’s a pink color on her cheeks that wasn’t there when she was running sprints a few minutes ago.

“Maybe _what_?” her friend replies.

Cara hesitates. “I _might_ have met someone…. _maybe_ ”

"Really?” Cheryl exclaims, excited, but trying to keep her voice down in the quiet space. “Are you going to tell me about him?"

“Not yet," Cara replies. To be honest she was too greedy to share her interesting night and the developing feelings that had started to blossom with anyone else yet. At the look of concern on the older woman's face she modified her previous statement. "Soon okay? I just want to see if it’s real or not before you judge it and pick it apart."

"I’m not going to judge you, Cara. I just don’t want to see you get hurt. Don’t rush into anything okay?"

Saying Cara had been unlucky in love over the years would be a gross understatement. Her romantic history had been littered with selfish narcissistic jerks or handsy creeps who treated her terribly--simultaneously showing her off and cheating on her in the same weekend; guys who told her to work out less because they were insecure about a woman stronger than them; guys who thought her career goals now were a joke, or guys who got off on her celebrity. Din was none of those things. He seemed too good to be true actually, and she tried not to worry about what the catch inevitably was _. It couldn't possibly be his life as a single father,_ she thought. He was selfless and kind and patient, what could ever be wrong with that?

“Look, it’s long-distance which has plenty of its own challenges so we’re just taking it slow; seeing where it goes. It’s simple. I just like talking to him, even if the time difference kind of sucks.”

Cheryl senses that’s all the information she’s going to get for now but her mind hones in on one detail. “Wait, he really doesn’t live here? You _actually_ met him on your trip? I was kidding…..”

Cara puts her phone back down on the chair and smiles at the memory. "Yeah, it was kind of thanks to you actually......"

……………………..

To be honest, for the past two weeks Din kept waiting for things to fizzle or get awkward as the excitement and giddy feelings of _'love at first sight’_ wore off, but it didn't happen. Everything was new and exciting, and he felt younger and lighter than he had in years. Their initial exploration of who the other person was didn't get boring at all the more they texted back and forth like middle-aged love-sick fools--it was quite the opposite really. It just got warmer and more comfortable but didn't lose its excitement. Cara had texted him off and on when she returned home to his surprise after his initial text and Din wondered the first few days if that would be the end of it once things returned to normal for her with work and her life there....but things didn’t peter out, they just developed a sort of schedule that did nothing to take away from the feeling of excitement, even when he knew to expect a text from her when she got off work. 

They were two hours apart based on stupid time zones, but it didn't bother them. They'd gladly stay up late or wake up early to chat. Din would text her good morning when he woke up and about 2 hours later his phone would chime when she woke up on the West coast. The sweetness of having a message to wake up to everyday made her feel ridiculous and sappy but she cherished his sweetness all the same. Likewise, she'd often get in the last text of the night as he either had to work or would drift off as they stayed up late texting in the dark. 

Cara was the first to send a picture--her breakfast of an orange and a half a bagel--but it was just the beginning of sharing the details of their daily lives beyond just texts. It seemed so strange to admit, but seeing a picture from her of her breakfast, her minimalist office, or her new sofa, reminded him she was really _real_ and not just a figment of his imagination. She sent him a picture of her making a funny face and he smiled at seeing her again unexpectedly--she was exactly as he remembered her. He was glad to know he hadn’t just imagined she looked as beautiful as she did the night they met.

The next day Din sent her a picture of two shirts laying on the bed. They were both identical white, long sleeved button-downs.

He sends her a question below the image.

**_Which one for work?_ **

He waits to see her reply.

**_:D lol, the right one of course._ **

He smiles at her indulging his lame joke.

_He replies._

**_You sure? I was thinking of the one on the left?_ **

He sees that she’s typing and waits to see what she’ll say next.

**_I wanted to say neither, but I didn't ;) Aren’t you proud of me?_ **

Cara was such a flirt. He'd have to up his game, he thought. She always found it funny when he managed to sneak in a flirty comment under her nose and she got the joke a minute later. He loved making her laugh but it seemed she loved making him hot under his collar without even realizing it.

**_You have no idea… <3_**

The first time he’d been too tired to type and the typos from his thumbs were making his messages difficult for Cara to interpret, he had slipped up and asked if he could just call her instead. As soon as the words came out of his mouth (well, his fingers) he instantly wished he could take them back. Would she think that was that coming on too strong? Texting was one thing--virtually harmless, and casual--but talking and hearing one another’s voices in the dark added a level of intimacy his tired brain wouldn’t have suggested in the daytime. He didn’t want to scare her off.

Her written reply of ‘ ** _sure, call me_** ,’ after an anxiety inducing moment of pause, made him wake up almost instantly, like a shot of caffeine or adrenaline straight to his brain.

Hearing her voice answer after the first ring pushed all the air out of his lungs and he had to remember how to breathe to say “hi” in return. He figured he probably sounded like a lovestruck dork, but she sounded exactly as he remembered and her voice, though heavy with sleep, was the most beautiful thing he’d ever heard. That first night they ended up talking for another four hours without even realizing how much time had gone by and he’d never been so tired and happy at the same time the next day at work. Hearing her laughter at his lame jokes and hearing her teasing witty comebacks had made his night. 

After that first call, things had changed. Now, they texted throughout the days at work but when the day was over and the sun had gone down, they talked on the phone to relax and decompress to the sound of a familiar voice. It was becoming his favorite part of the day. It was always a toss-up who would call who first, but the time of the call seemed to be rolling back earlier and earlier so they had more time before they fell asleep. The problem was there was only so much he could move Alex’s bedtime earlier and earlier before he simply wasn’t sleepy enough to fall asleep after bath and story time.

Third week of November

“Daddy, who are you talking to so late? You said you were going to bed.” Alex’s fluffy bed-head peeked out through his cracked bedroom door. He must have woken up after Din had put him down. _Busted_. Din felt his cheeks turn hot as he froze with the phone still against his ear.

He felt like a kid getting caught on the phone by his parents after lights out; but while his parents would have embarrassed him on purpose, he knew his son would just ask a series of even more embarrassing questions without even realizing why his father's cheeks were turning so pink. Cara’s laughter as she heard Din get called out by his kid for talking on the phone too late did nothing to ease his embarrassment. He rubbed the back of his neck and thought of what he should say.

It had been two weeks, and in their nightly chats Cara had never shied away from talking about Din’s son. She often asked about him and seemed genuinely engaged and interested when Din would tell her something funny he said or did that day. It made Din’s heart feel three times larger knowing he could tell her about the important things in his life without boring her or losing her interest. He couldn’t avoid talking about his kid for anything and he was glad she also saw Alex as a priority. 

“Do you want me to say ‘hi’ to satisfy his curiosity or just say goodnight and talk to you tomorrow?” Cara asked, over the phone still next to his ear. He had enjoyed their private time at night after Alex went to bed but maybe he should introduce her to him in the spirit of openness. He had been hesitant, in case Alex got attached to her and things didn’t work out, but Cara didn’t seem eager to disappear from his life any time soon and he was glad. Anyway, Alex didn’t get attached to anyone without a long struggle so it couldn’t hurt just to introduce them.

“This is Cara, come here,” he tells his sleepy son, and beckons him closer where he’s been sitting on the couch talking to Cara. He had been just about to turn in himself, falling asleep to her laugh as she recounted something amusing from her day at work. With her array of clients there was never a shortage of funny anecdotes to make him laugh and forget about his own worries. “Do you want to say hi?” he asks, as Alex climbed onto the couch alongside him.

"Okay."

_That’s his boy_ , he thinks. _Loquacious and social beyond belief……_

He put her on speaker phone.

“You’re on speaker phone,” he announces to her, so she knows when the five year-old was listening.

“Hi” she said, over the speaker, and it amused Din that she actually sounded nervous.

“Hi,” Alex said before turning to his dad. “What does she look like? Where does she live? Why are you talking to her so late?”

“I don’t have a picture of her (a lie, but he didn’t want Cara to know he had saved the one she sent on his phone), she lives in California, and uhhh…..", he hesitated here, "I like talking to her a lot.”

“You can google me you know,” she suggests. “My picture will come up. You can even read him my bio if you like,” she says jokingly, at how flustered Din sounds trying to come up with an explanation that will satisfy a 5 year-old about who she is and why he's talking to her so late at night.

He takes her off speaker and holds up the phone to his ear to politely argue with her.

“I'm _not_ googling you,” he reminds her vehemently. “Anything I learn about you I want to come from you. That's half the fun isn't it?”

“Yeah....I guess. Suit yourself.” She tries to make her reply come across as exasperated, but she probably let some affection slip in there somewhere. _That was sweet--that was Din_, she thinks _._ She can’t remember the last time she met someone and they didn’t immediately google her when they found out who she was.

Earlier in the week they had engaged in a very similar conversation and she had told him then, “you can watch one of my fights or read my bio, if you want. That's public knowledge. You're not invading any of my privacy. You asked what kind of fighting I did, so that's a good way you can see it. Just not when kiddo is awake."

But now it’s late and he’s trying to not get distracted because he has a curious kid to answer to. “We’ll revisit this conversation later,” he tells her patiently. “Get ready to lose though Dune, I’m used to conversing with a brick wall, I have loads of practice.” He hears her laugh over the line and his kid smiles simply at the rare and goofy grin it pulls from Din’s face, not the joke itself.

“What about this,” she offers as an alternative, “you want to video chat so he can see me? It might be less confusing to him.”

“Video chat??” Din asks--surprised, but also elated at the suggestion. He'd get to see her again.

“S-sure yeah.”

“Hold on, let me turn on a light,” she says. He hers her bed sheets rustling as she moves around and tries to shut down the visual that’s making its way into his mind. Din sees the incoming request for video and swipes the accept circle a little too exuberantly and almost hangs up on her in the process.

He can see her face pretty clearly, though it’s obvious she just turned on a bedside lamp for light since she had already climbed in bed so they could catch up before going to sleep. He could make out the shape of a headboard behind her and for the first time he wondered what her house looked like. She said it was a split-level townhome, but this glimpse into her sanctuary only gave him more questions. Her hair is down for bed and she’s wearing a shirt he can just barely see the thin straps of. Her lightly freckled shoulders keep making an appearance when she adjusts her hold on her phone to keep it steady and Din finds himself entirely consumed by the distraction of her pale skin peeking in and out of frame. He’s wearing an old white Hanes cotton shirt and wished he’d known to expect this event. He would have dressed nicer. 

Din holds the phone out toward the kid with messy bed hair so he can see the screen. “Hi, I'm Cara,” she says, “what's your name?”

“Alex,” he says, as brave and talkative as can be expected for a kid his age, but surprises Din when he reaches out to hold the phone between his two hands, seemingly intrigued by his dad's _friend_.

“Hi,” she says, to the younger boy before turning her attention to his father. “Din, he's huge!” 

At that, he saw Alex perk right up, preening like a peacock for being seen as a big kid.

“How old are you, anyway, like eight?” she asks, as if she doesn’t already know.

“Five,” he says proudly and holds the phone closer to his face.

“Do you go to school?” she asks him.

“Yes,” Alex says concisely, not yet mastering the art of small talk.

“Yeah, of course you do,” she chuckles, not deterred by his one-word answers. _Typical kid_.

“I bet you learn about a lot of stuff. What's your favorite thing at school?”

At this Din listened in too, always eager to learn something more about his son’s likes. Usually he just gets a generic answer about what he did at school on any given day. Cara seems so at ease with him already and he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t impressed.

Alex thinks about it for a second. “The playground’s my favorite,” he decides, after serious consideration.

“That was my favorite too,” Cara says. “I bet you can run really fast. You ever play tag?” 

“Yeah. I chase my friends really fast; they can never catch _me_ though.”

"Smart kid, that's how it's done." 

Din sees his boy smiling and he releases the breath he didn't realize he was holding. _Of course he would like Cara,_ he thought. She was wonderful.

At this point Alex is already looking more relaxed and almost forgets his dad’s there until he pulls him into his lap so he can see Cara’s face too. Din can’t believe how easily his son’s taking a shine to Cara. His boy has always been extremely shy and has never taken a shine to strangers at all, even after multiple introductions. Din realizes that somewhere during his musings, he’s lost where the conversation went off to….

He hears Alex and Cara easily talking back and forth and relaxes against the couch to just focus on how excited Alex sounds at having another person to talk to.

“….and I found a rock outside that's really shiny. I think it was from a volcano.”

“A volcano? Wow!” Cara exclaims, and Din’s amazed at how genuinely excited she sounds at his kid’s pride at his prize rock which is probably a piece of gravel. She doesn’t sound like she is placating him at all like other people do when they struggle connecting with a child.

“You let me know if you find any dinosaur bones okay? We have a huge museum here. They collect them there.”

“Dinosaur bones are called fossils," Alex informs her confidently, and both Din and Cara laugh at Alex correcting her vocabulary.

Din can see her nod her head on the screen, impressed with his knowledge. “That's right. You're a smart kid--there’s no way you’re only five.”

“I have some dinosaurs in my room,” his son tells her, totally taken with her kindness already. “Want to see?”

“Of course I do. Are they real though?’ she asks, pretending to be slightly trepidatious about seeing real prehistoric lizards.

“Of course not, they're my toys,” he tells her, and smiles a toothy grin at his dad.

“Oh good, then,” she says, visibly relieved and Din can’t help but smile at Alex’s smile missing a few teeth. “I thought they were your pets for a second,” she explains.

She hears him of camera as he turns to whisper loudly (as children do) in Din’s ear, laughing, “she's silly daddy.”

“She is,” Din agrees, and playfully swats at him as he runs off. “Go get your toys.”

The five year-old returns with his arms completely full of dinosaur toys and a few of his favorite stuffies. He shows them all to the camera one by one and Cara repeats the name of each one so she can remember them for next time. 

Alex is getting wound up showing her all his toys and it’s getting late, so she has an idea. “Have you ever seen 'The Good Dinosaur'?” she asks the budding paleontologist. “It's a movie.” 

Alex shakes his head at the screen before turning to Din. “Can I see it, daddy?”

Before Din can answer, she interrupts him. “How about this,” she suggests to the boy, I'll find the book and read some of it to you another night to see if you like it. Everyone knows you have to read the book before you see the movie.”

He immediately jumps on her idea. “Really? Like before bedtime?” 

“Yep,” she agrees, “if that's okay with your dad.”

Din can’t pass up such an offer--a reason to talk to Cara even more and spend relaxing time with Alex before bed.

“Fine by me.”

The next few nights found Cara fulfilling her promise; reading a few pages of the children’s book over the phone every night. It seemed to knock Alex out like a tranquilizer dart and Din was appreciative of the reduced struggle surrounding bedtime. _She was a natural with kids._ The only problem was that the sound of her soft voice that put his kid to sleep worked on him too and Din found himself drifting off to the sound of her voice with embarrassing frequency. He and Alex would get snuggled under the blankets in Din’s queen-sized bed and listen as Cara read him 5 pages of the story with frequent and hilarious interruptions from Alex about his day or a detail of the story he found unbelievable. What should take five minutes to read always ended up getting stretched over an hour but there were no complaints.

A few nights later Din found himself combing his fingers through his son’s hair an hour after he fell asleep while he and Cara continued talking, but growing increasingly tired. They'd turned off the video to save battery since they were both lying in bed in the dark and just talked on the phone instead. “You're spoiling him you know,” Din’s content but sleepy voice came over the line.

“Is that bad?” she asked, unsure if she crossed some line she didn’t know about accidentally. “I'll stop if you want me to.”

“Of course not,” he interjected. “It's amazing, he loves it. I just don't want you to feel like you _have to_. I know you're tired after work too.” 

“I like it,” she assures him. “He’s a good kid and he seems to really enjoy it. I like it too," she says mischievously, "but I have to admit I _especially_ like it when he falls asleep easily so I get to talk to you.”

 _Sneaky, flattering, and somehow kind all at the same time—where the Hell did this woman come from?_ he wonders, not for the first time. He couldn’t help but smile even though he knew she couldn’t see it. “Me too…..”

……………………another day…………….

She took a selfie of herself at the gym before it opened.

.......................a few days later…………………

Din sent her a picture of him and Alex on the couch eating cereal, cartoons in the background. 

......................several more days go by………..................

It was the weekend and one of the few Saturdays they both had off from work. Cara sent Din a picture of herself in front of the giant brontosaurus skeleton in the museum where she was spending the rainy day.

The picture she received in return was of Alex’s brontosaurus with its whole head and long neck in a green soda bottle. The text accompanying the picture was ‘ ** _taking a drink_** ,’ and she laughed loud enough the other museum-goers look at her rudely. 

She texts him back

**_let me guess, it's stuck in there now :O_ **

He replies almost instantly. He must still have his phone in his hand

**_how did you know ? :)_ **

She replies just as quickly

**_just psychic I guess. I didn't see that exhibit in the museum though._ **

Din’s next reply takes longer to compose. It comes through a few seconds later and she smiles before she even reads it.

**_It's a little-known fact, but the fossil record supports that this is actually the way the dinosaurs became extinct. They all got their heads stuck in Sprite bottles :/_ **

_Shit._

_She kind of loved this man._

_Well, fuck._

.........................The following week..............................

“Long night? “she asks, when he calls almost two full hours later than their “regular time.” She wasn’t worried, she’d insist if someone asked. _She wasn’t._

"The _longest_ ," he says, and while she’s relieved to hear from him, she’s concerned at how tired and defeated he sounded.

“What happened?” she asks, trying not to sound impatient or worried though she might be a little of the second one.

"There's wine all over my work shirt and there's blood oozing out of the bandage on my hand into the bathroom sink.”

“What the hell happened? Are you okay _?” Surely he wasn't in a fight at work_ , she thought.

There was nothing she could do from across the country, but she still felt her body wind up in worry. 

He tells her about his night. “There was a football convention--some signing event or something. It wasn't the _players_ , they were all really nice and super respectful," he says, "but it was the drunk fans. Imagine a hundred of drunk dudes yelling about how their team is the best and using the bar and lounge like their personal living room. They made a complete mess of the whole area. It was like a frat party in a hotel--food everywhere, wine bottles on the floor. One guy tried getting the cork out with his teeth because he said a wine opener was for, and I quote, _“girly men”_. What the hell does that even mean?”

The whole thing sounds insane and she snorts at his re-telling--he’s always such an animated storyteller. It’s one of the many things she loves about him. “I'm sorry," she says apologetically, "it's not funny. I wish I could have been there to help.”

"I wouldn't want to subject you to that," he tells her, glad she wasn't there, "though you could have kicked the ass of every guy there and I would have loved it."

She snickers at his suggestion. “I would have loved to, just for them ruining your night.”

"I had to get on my hands and knees to clean up dried nacho cheese from under a table. The mop wouldn't even get it to budge and now there’s cheese all over my pants.”

She can imagine it perfectly. “What happened to your hand?” she asks, remembering he said he was bleeding into the sink.

“Oh yeah,” he says as he remembers he forgot that part. “They finally left to go to another party, but while I was cleaning up the hurricane they left behind, I cut my hand on a piece of broken glass that was shoved inside a napkin. It was a beer bottle by the color of the glass. Who raised these people? It was awful.” Once he gets the anger and frustration out, he feels better but deflates and feels bad for unloading his stress on her. She doesn’t need to hear about his horrible night. They talked to each other to be happy and unwind and he felt like he might have ruined her night with his complaining.

He hopes it's not too much of a turn off for her, but he feels even more guilty if he brought down her night too. “Sorry Cara, I don't mean to complain.” 

“No, don't be sorry,” she says firmly. “ _I’m_ sorry you had to deal with that shit. Is there anything I can do to make it better?"

He smiles at the genuine care he can hear in her voice and it loosens his tongue as he relaxes. “Just hearing your voice makes it better,” he assures her. “Thanks for listening. I wanted to talk to you all night.”

"Was there any _good_ part of the night," she asks, trying to be an optimist though it didn't really come naturally to her until she started talking to Din.

“Getting to talk to you?” he proposes. 

“Smooth Din,” she teases him, and the way her voice sounded in the dark wrapping around that word next to his name made him feel hot all of the sudden in a way he couldn’t explain. 

He clears his throat. “I guess it wasn't _so_ bad. When I got home, I saw Alex drew a picture for you. I'll take a picture of it in the morning. I’d send it now, but I don't want to get blood on it.”

……………………….days………………………..

They talk about their childhoods and swap past embarrassing stories. They’re not always groundbreaking conversations either—it’s often the little things like what they had for dinner—but they don’t shy away from the heavy stuff either. They spoke of their families that were years gone and what it had been like losing them and the impact of moving into adulthood on their own. They've had surprisingly similar lives, they found out. He tells her more of the story around his troubled younger years and his adoption of Alex.

“My past wasn't so stellar,” he says slightly embarrassed, but wanting to be honest with her, “but everything changed when I got him.”

“Sounds like you saved each other then,” she says gently, and he liked thinking of it that way. It never really occurred to him in that way before, but she was absolutely right. _She'd be so smug if he told her that though_. He smiles just imagining her face with that damn smirk.

They cackled in the dark telling stories to one-up each other on the adolescent dumbass scale, and they spoke of the questionable choices they'd made when they were younger and less sure of themselves and who they wanted to be.

Din still adamantly refused to learn anything else about her from the internet--not her birthday, her history, or anything else, and he was so glad he waited as the weeks went by. Hearing about her from _her_ was so much better. She had given him her blessing to research her to make sure she was who she told him she was, but when he told her his reason for refusing she seemed genuinely touched.

They also talked about their plans for the future and their long-term goals and the size of family they each wanted.

“I've always wanted to have kids,” she tells him quietly one night, “but I'm approaching the age where it'll only get harder, not easier, despite being in a good place career-wise.”

“It’s still possible” he tells her optimistically. “You’re a few years younger than me.”

She’s moved beyond tired to half asleep, and blames her brain’s exhausted state for her candid musings she normally wouldn’t admit to. “Not to sound like a narcissist, but I always thought I'd be a good mother if I ever got the chance.”

He didn’t like the way her voice sounded when talking about a dream she might never get to live. It did something funny to his chest. _It made him want things.... It made him want to give her things....._

“Alex loves you,” he tells her, “and he’s never even met you. I know you'd be a wonderful mother, Cara.” 

She made a sound that was less than sure, but sounded agreeable just to be polite. She wasn’t convinced, but Din certainly was. She’d be amazing. Maybe Alex could help him convince her one day soon.

“To be honest,” Din says, “I always thought I’d have a house full of kids, especially growing up an only child. Though it’s looking less and less likely, I still would like a couple more. Alex would love to have a brother or sister and I’ve gotten better at this parenting thing since he was a baby. I had no siblings so I naturally wanted that for my kids--lots of brothers and sisters to play with--but I'm already 40, it's looking less and less likely it might happen.”

She seems perfectly content accepting the loss of her dream but not the loss of his. “You never know, you could have a couple of more kids in the next few years, Din. You _do_ know how that happens right?”

He couldn’t help but laugh at the quick turn their serious conversation took. While he knew she was changing the subject, he was kind of glad. Hearing her disappointment in a future that seemed unattainable to someone as kind and generous and _good_ as she was didn’t sit well with him. He was happy for the distraction from wanting to do almost anything to make her smile again, and what it might mean. He grinned at the phone in the dark to answer her question. “No, I don’t. Why don’t you explain it to me.”

She made no sound but when he closed his eyes, he could practically see her grin sneaking up her lips from halfway across the country. “I’d rather _show_ you.”

“You're the worst,” he deadpans. “What am I supposed to do with yo—No Wait! I take that back. Don’t answer that!”

 _That little shit, she was still smiling on the other end of the line_ , he just knew it. Her voice was full of mischief and something warmer and more sensual when she spoke. “You’re a fast learner, Djarin.”

He'd be lying if he said he'd never thought about the next few years. He knew it was rushing things even in his mind, but they both seemed to want the same things out of life--a job they enjoyed and brought joy to other people and a family to come home to at the end of the day. _They would make such beautiful babies_ , his tired brain helpfully supplied when they hung up for the night. He could give her that dream she spoke of wistfully if this ended up becoming serious-- _more serious_ —as the months marched on. Maybe that’s why they met and it felt like such a dream how instantly they connected. They could be each other’s dream…

That might have been the sappiest handful of sentences he’d ever thought of, but he couldn’t really argue with any of it as he fell asleep thinking of her.

…………………………………………………

The last week of November

Din's schedule was all over the place lately. When he worked days, there was no conflict with childcare needs since he worked the same hours as the preschool was open, but he also had to work nights pretty often, and that’s where things got more complicated. On those days, he drove Alex to preschool and then came home and slept so he could work the late shift after dropping off his son at his neighbor Rosie's to watch him overnight. It wasn't the best solution, but it worked out pretty well. Alex got to go to school during the day and see his dad at night. Only after dinner and a bath did Din walk him over to the neighbors for a 'good night', or sometimes Rosie came over to watch him if he was already asleep. He didn't know what he'd do without the generosity of the older retired teacher next door with a heart the size of a house. She never even let him attempt to pay her.

Now their schedule had changed slightly, much to Din's amusement. Alex refused to go to sleep until he had told Cara about his day. It warmed Din's heart hearing the two of them talking at night. Cara wasn't just tolerating his son; she really made him feel special. Even Ms. Rosie had asked Din about her because Alex spoke so highly of this ‘Cara’ and her stories before bed. Sometimes the phone would ring at night and Alex would scoop it up and be talking to Cara for a good ten minutes before Din realized he had “shown" her some new toy or other thing that stood out to him that day. She never got bored, or irritated, or short with him either. Whenever Din would come in and " _save her_ ," she insisted she didn't mind at all--she liked hearing about his son’s day too. 

..........................................................

Din had met Cara that night the first week of November and she had said back then her next trip was planned for the 15th of December. It was nearing the end of November now, but they both chose not to focus on the rapidly approaching date in case they jinxed it or it turned their fun and sweet getting to know each other into a task with an expiration date.

…………………..November 30th…………….

She texts him at almost 9pm her time. **_U still awake?_**

 ** _Yeah. Hey. How are you?_** He texts her back almost immediately, though waiting a necessary two seconds so she wouldn’t know he had been glancing at his phone all night. He texted a second line before she could even respond to the first.

**_Long day at work?_ **

She usually texted him as soon as she was done with work, and he'd be lying if he didn't bite down a little feeling of worry when 7pm his time came and went with no word from her. 

It took her longer to reply than usual, which only added to his worry he'd insist wasn't there. **_I fell asleep as soon as I got home. Some idiot brought cut flowers for the front desk of the gym and my whole body feels like it was hit by a truck._**

He felt himself relax.

**_I'll let you go back to sleep then_** _,_ he types.

**_No, I'm awake. Can I call now?_ **

**_Yeah, but you just missed Alex, he passed out on the couch and I carried him to bed. He'll be disappointed he didn't get to talk to you._ **

He can hear her sniffling on the phone as soon as he answers. “You sound miserable,” he tells her, “did you take any medicine?”

“Yeah, Benadryl,” she answers, “that's why I passed out with my shoes still on, I guess. I’m not deathly allergic but they make my nose run and my eyes all itchy.” 

“I’ll try to keep the flowers to a minimum.,” he assures her, and is glad he picked up on this little fact before he sent her flowers.

“I just don’t like _cut_ flowers,” she explains. “They've been _cut_ \--they’re dying—who gives someone _dying_ flowers. It's better to give a potted plant so you can enjoy it for years."

“I’m guessing you don’t have a huge garden at your house?”

“I like plants,” she tells him, “but it’s the flowers themselves my allergies don't love.”

Cara pauses a second, before deciding to share some more. “My mother actually collected plants--little desert flowers and little cacti, but mostly the plump shiny succulents that grow out in rings or like beads over the side of the container and have that waxy covering. As a kid I couldn’t help but touch them and the pieces would fall off, but if you put them in the dirt they'll start a whole new plant. She never got mad, but she ended up with a ton of little baby offshoots because of my grabby hands.”

He listened as she rarely talked about her mother at all. “You should start your own collection,” he says and the vision of her kneeling down in the sun, covered in dirt, is too appealing for him to linger on this late at night.

She lets out a little sound of agreement. “Mmmm. Maybe," she says thoughtfully, really thinking about it. "I _do_ have a lot of sun on my patio.”

“Enough about me,” she says abruptly, changing the subject, “how was your night off?”

“Good,” he tells her, “relaxing. We watched ‘The good dinosaur’. I think we can both say we enjoyed your rendition much more."

“Mmmmmm, sounds nice.” She made a soft sound in the back of her throat that came out a lot when she was clearly sleepy. “Wish I could have been there with you both.” 

“Me too,” he says automatically, before he can regret it or second guess the clear emotion behind it.

She finally broke their vow of silence regarding their ‘date’ that was coming up. “You know, it's only two weeks until I land in Chicago. Last chance to blow me off if you don't want to go out to lunch.”

“Are you kidding? It's all I think about.” He didn’t even mean to say that, it just slipped out. She made him so relaxed he couldn’t help but be open and honest, even to a fault, when his mouth ran away from him.

“You’re going to make me blush,” she teases him, and is surprised to actually feel heat blooming across her cheeks.

“I can’t wait to see it,” he says quietly into the phone and he feels himself drifting off to sleep with that image in his head. He remembers the white shirt she had worn the first time he saw her in the bar. He bet her blush would run down her neck and across the delicate skin of her chest…….

………………..the first two weeks of December fly by…………………….

The closer they got, the more anxious Din became. Suddenly, it was real. It wasn't just talk of a meeting that may or may not happen in the distant future. They had planned for this. He knew her itinerary and she told him what time to expect her. He looked forward to it so much he worried if maybe he was setting himself up for disappointment. She said it was a date and they were clearly into each other and quite invested already, but what if the spark over the phone wasn't there in person? What if it was awkward or he wasn't who she remembered he was? What if he remembered her differently and she was rude or aloof or blew him off entirely? His gut instinct certainly didn't feel it had been a game, but he was worried maybe he had fallen too hard for someone he'd seen once.

The only thing that made him feel better was that Cara seemed to be as nervous as he was. They talked at least twice a day now and texted probably a hundred times a day on top of that. The pictures they exchanged were honest and candid and relaxed. They weren't trying to impress each other as much as the first few days or weeks they were feeling each other out, because they knew they genuinely liked the person on the other end of the line now.

“I'll see you tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow.”


	2. A First Date

The night before she was supposed to arrive in ORD Din could hardly sleep. He trusted her, but he couldn’t help but worry if she was really coming. He didn't think she was leading him on for the past 6 weeks or that she had a single cruel bone in her body, but maybe she had a change of heart when it went from playful flirting over the phone to actually sitting face to face again. The last time he stood across from her there had been definite chemistry, so he hoped it was still there. They’d talked so much he felt like he had known her for years and he hoped she felt the same way. He'd tried to open up and be transparent with her about everything despite his nature to hold things close to the vest to keep from getting hurt. Even his son told him to be brave like the superheroes on TV, so Din supposed he could try for a date with a beautiful woman he had fallen surprisingly hard for. 

  
December 15th. The date.

He woke up that morning to a text from Cara.

**_Taking off. Text you when I land._ **

After dropping off his boy at preschool, he cleaned his car and vacuumed out the cheerios and cracker dust. He trimmed his beard, dug out some aftershave, and spent more time in front of a mirror than he had in years. He even put some waxy stuff in his hair to keep it from having cowlicks all over the place. 

He had butterflies in his stomach all morning--No, butterflies were too gentle to describe the feeling in his stomach, he thought--He felt sick. 

He had waited for this and planned for this and hoped he didn’t make an idiot of himself or have Cara call of their lunch date early if he didn't impress her. _No, Cara wasn't like that_ , he thought. She wouldn't laugh or blow him off--she was kind. He agonized over what to wear and he never cared about what he wore. He didn't want to dress too nice and come across as stuffy or business-like; this wasn't an interview; it was a date. He hadn't been on one of those in years. He felt too old to be worrying this much about impressing a girl.

_…Woman_

_…Cara_

…Someone he felt drawn to and attracted to and had an instant bond with he couldn't explain, but the more time they got to know each other everything just seemed to click. They already knew they liked each other so he wanted to look casual and make her feel comfortable. He finally decided on khaki slacks and a button-down shirt with a deep green cable knit sweater over it. He'd roll up the sleeves anyway for lunch so he wouldn't be too hot. On second thought, he'd be sitting next to Cara, so maybe he'd be sweaty--sweaty wasn't good on a date--he'd lose the button up shirt underneath.

…………………………………..

Cara gets off her plane and walks to the ground transport/baggage claim area and she feels sick to her stomach in nerves or anticipation, or maybe both. 

She sees Din across the crowd and suddenly all doubt disappeared. He was _there_ , looking exactly as she remembered him and exactly as he did in their frequent video calls. Green brought out the color of his skin and the dark color of his hair.

His smile is transcendent--lighting up the whole room--and suddenly it's like there's no one else there.

She can’t help but grin in return at seeing his face when he spots her.

She steps a bit quicker through the crowd of people to get to him and all awkwardness about their greeting goes out the window as she walks into his arms and gives him a warm embrace. _He smells good._

Din’s having similar thoughts. As soon as he laid eyes on her all worry was forgotten. She was wearing a pale ivory cashmere sweater with a scoop neckline and dark washed jeans. She looked amazing.

Her shampoo smells clean and feminine without smelling like flowers--it's almost citrusy. He loves it.

She can feel his arms wrapped around her but one of his hands is closed holding something behind her.

"It's so good to see you," she says against his shoulder, really meaning it.

"I can't believe you're here," he says in return, as he pulls back slightly to see her smiling face.

"I uh....," he stammers slightly, as he finds his words after the shock of seeing her wears off. He presents what he was holding in his hand to her. “I got you these flowers. I hope they don't make you sneeze.”

She was shocked. It was a small collection of stems wrapped in a paper bow, but it was what she noticed upon closer inspection that made her feel warm all over. They were beautiful and intricate but they wouldn’t ever produce any pollen. They were made of paper--different colors and texture--complete with stems and leaves and everything. 

“Where on earth did you find these?” she asks in awe.

“I made them,” he tells her plainly, fighting down the urge to fidget under her praise.

“You _made_ these?” she asks him disbelievingly.

“Yeah, I know they look pretty amateurish, but I watched a lot of internet videos on paper flowers since you said cut ones make you feel horrible.”

“They're wonderful," she says, overcome with his thoughtfulness. "They're so realistic.”

Din had spent so much time at the art supply store picking out different textures of tissue paper and cardstock it looked like he was going into the stationary business. The first few attempts at wrapping the wire and feathering the edges had been truly laughable but he finally came up with a handful he thought were passable: a couple of roses, some billowy peonies, carnations, and daisies. 

“Maybe you can put them on your desk,” he suggests. “From the picture you sent, it looked pretty empty.” _It was true_ , she thought. She had nothing personal or colorful on her desk, as her coworkers often pointed out. She'd have to find a little vase of cup or something to put them in and they'd last almost forever.

“I will," she says, already looking forward to seeing them every day in the office to brighten up the place.

He snaps out of his trance when he sees her still holding her bag. “Here let me take that,” he offers, and grabs her carry-on and wraps the strap around his shoulder while he maneuvers the rolling bag to his side as well. 

“Okay. You ready to have the longest lunch in the history of mankind?” he says excitedly, as he turns them toward the exit. They had exactly four hours until he had to have her back.

She smiles at him; the adorable dork, she's found herself so taken with. “I'm ready. I skipped out on breakfast to keep room available for this pizza.”

The exchange small talk about her flight and his night at work to fill the time as they walk back toward his car, but it's the small glances they keep giving each other that immediately takes over. They can't stop looking at each other. What they felt when they first met and nurtured over the phone seemed even more intense in person now. Being close to her was intoxicating.

They finally make their way back to his car in the hourly parking deck.

Her things go carefully in the trunk to avoid crushing her flowers and then she moves around to the passenger seat. When she reaches for the handle though, Din is quicker, and opens it for her with flourish.

They pay the fee to get through the gate and pull out of the parking deck onto one of the small streets that follows parallel to the highway. Din's nervous and can't help running his mouth. “I thought we could walk but it's faster if we drive and it started snowing pretty hard. I'm sorry, you must be tired of sitting in a chair all day. We could still walk but I don't want you to get cold. The snow can be really annoying sometimes.”

It's true, it's really coming down now, but it's not the kind of snow that delays flights; it's soft fat fluffy snowflakes and Cara looks around in wonder at how much is already accumulated on the ground. 

“I don't mind the drive,” she tells him. It’s cute how talkative he is when he’s nervous.

“And I love the snow, it's beautiful,” she continues. “I never see snow back home, I guess my shoes aren't really made for this.” They're boots at least, but more the fashion variety than the outdoor-trekking variety. She looks out her window at the soft blanket falling around them. “I'm going to fall on my ass, aren't I? It's really coming down.” 

"Don't worry, they salt the sidewalk," he reassures her, "it'll be fine. I won't let you fall."

"I trust you."

Din tells her a little about the place they’re headed to. "You know, most tourists go to Uno's, but I thought we could go to Gino's instead. It's probably even better and it's less packed with people taking pictures. I've known the owner for years. I've been coming here since I was in college--real mom-and-pop-run restaurant. I hope you like it."

 _He truly seemed nervous_ , she thought; like he was really worried it might not live up to her expectations.

She put her hand on his arm closest to hers on the steering wheel. “I'm sure it'll be amazing. I'm so hungry.”

“I can fix that,” he says confidently as he turns onto a side street. “We're already here.”

He pulls into the parking lot and chooses a spot, avoiding the trees that will likely dump snow on both his car and them. _That was fast_ , she thinks. She was almost hoping for more one-on-one time with him in the car. 

"I told you it was just a quick drive. If it wasn't snowing, we could have walked." He puts the parking brake on and walks around to her side to open the door for her before she can get it open herself. 

“Thank you.” That's twice he's opened and held the door for her. She's certainly not used to it, but finds it sweet all the same. She could definitely _get_ used to it. 

He reaches out a gloved hand as she rises from the seat. "Better take my hand, just to be safe,” he tells her with a wink, “it's really slippery." He grins at her to let her know he's just teasing and smiles back at him.

"Is that right? Safety _is_ pretty important," she says, as she slips on her gloves and grabs his hand to leverage herself out of the car. “Lead the way then,” she tells him. Gloved hands hold each other and he can feel the heat of her palm through both his layer of weatherproof material and hers. They hit a slick patch on the sidewalk and the feel of her foot slipping out from underneath her makes her grab for his arm with her other hand, and she ends up almost wrapped around his arm.

“You paid for that ice to be put there, be honest,” she quips, to hide her embarrassment at almost falling on her backside.

Din chuckles. “You got me. I paid off the clouds to rain and freeze just to be close to you.”

“I hope you can get your money back, Din. You could have reached out to hold my hand without all the snow. I wouldn't object.”

“I'll keep that in mind for summer,” he says swinging their hands between them a little. “You wouldn't believe how the clouds hike up their rates for ice in July.”

They walk in through the front door and Cara follows Din up a few steps to a wooden deck with a few tables that overlooks the lower level. It feels private without being obnoxiously so.

Din helps remove her coat and hangs it from a hook on the wall near the table. They have most of the section to themselves, which is great so they can talk. Din wonders how much of it is chance and how much is Gino and his son doing him a favor. He can see them sneaking glances at him and his 'date' from the kitchen. 

They take off their gloves and when they settle down across from each other at the wooden table, Cara reaches out to place her hand over the back of his--still slightly cool from the outside temperature. She smiles softly at him and explains her reasoning for touching him again in case he needs an explanation. “There's no ice, but I thought I better hold on anyway……just in case.”

"Just in case,” he repeats. “I like ‘ _just in case’_.”

He turns his hand over and the feel of their warm palms and cool fingertips touching is amazing. They're so lost looking at each other up close, they visibly startle when they hear someone speak right next to them. They might have forgotten they were in a restaurant all together, given how they both jump as the waiter appeared out of nowhere. 

Their waiter doesn’t seem to catch on that he’s not really needed at all. “How you guys doing? What can I get you to drink?”

They get their drinks and Cara defers to Din to order something they'll both enjoy. A couple of local beers and water glasses show up and as soon as the waiter steps away their hands find each other's across the table again. She's not even sure if they’re aware of what their hands are doing automatically, searching each other out. This is amazing--being here with him, hearing his voice in person, and getting to touch his hand. 

The pizza takes almost an hour to bake. "It's deep-dish so it takes forever," he explains to her, "but it's worth the wait." 

“I don't mind. I have almost 3 hours until I need to get back.” 

His thumb grazes the back of her hand. “To tell you the truth, I've pretty much forgotten about the pizza already.”

She grins so hard it makes her cheeks hurt. “Me too.”

As time ticks by, their hands are creeping up past fingertips and palms to dangerous and exciting places like wrists and forearms and she feels really warm for some reason. _'Stop feeling him up Cara_ ,' she tells herself. 'Cool it down'. _He just wanted to take you out to lunch, not be groped for three hours._

She tries to distract herself so she doesn’t creep him out. “So, tell me something you haven't told me over the phone,” she asks him, and slides her fingers in between his until they fit perfectly together in a casual grip so as to stop herself from reaching up higher on his forearm to the base of his tattoo he'd told her the story behind weeks ago. 

Instead of telling her a story, all that comes out of Din’s mouth as he stares at their joined hands is, “This is so weird.” He says it with a sense of amazement, but she can’t help but snort at his strange compliment she wasn’t convinced he meant to say out loud.

She teases him, “ _Weird_? Really? _That's_ the adjective you'd use? Not wonderful or amazing?”

That smirk that he would never admit he dreams about appears on her lips to let him know she’s just ribbing him, so he plays along.

“Forgive me, I'm so blinded by your beauty and overwhelmed by your _humility_ , I’m having a hard time forming words. It _is_ weird though, in the most wonderful way. I can't believe you're actually here.”

“So, is _that_ the something you haven’t told me over the phone?” she asks, still teasing him.

"Ummm," he hesitates, and looks up while he's thinking. They had talked about so much that he had a hard time trying to think of something he hadn't told her. 

"I'm scared of swimming in the ocean. Have I told you that?"

"What?” Cara asked, clearly surprised. “I thought you could swim."

"I can,” he states. “I just have this fear though of getting my leg tangled in seaweed or feeling something like a jellyfish wrap around me."

This feels safe--their conversation and teasing--like their long talks every night, so she feels natural sharing next. "I have nightmares about those house centipedes crawling up my pants leg. Is that weird?"

"Yes, that is _so_ weird!” he laughs at her, “they're completely harmless.” 

"But they have all those legs!" she exclaims. Her face all scrunched up only makes him laugh even harder.

“I thought you loved animals,” he argues with her.

“I do,” she insists. “But, that's not an _animal \--_that's a demon with a thousand legs.”

The pizza comes and they dig in, trying and failing not to make a mess. He’s trying to reach across the table to serve them both, to keep as much sauce away from her nice sweater as possible, but it's an awkward angle. She suggests to him, "why don’t you sit over here so you don’t have to reach?"

"You just want me to sit next to you or you worried about the pizza?" he asks her, finally feeling confident enough to really tease her back.

She responds almost instantly, putting his last reservations to rest “I'll say this, I’m not really worried about the pizza.”

 _Well, okay then. He won't argue with that logic._ He's wanted to sit next to her the whole time but didn't want to be weird. _Okay then._ He gets up and she scoots over so he can move his chair beside hers, practically touching.

“Do you make pizza at home?” she asks him, sometime later.

He finishes chewing and swallows before answering. "I don't want to burn down my apartment so that's a 'no' for sure." 

“Did you ever watch one of the fights I sent you on YouTube?” 

He nods. “I got about twenty seconds into it before Alex walked in and I had to turn it off in a hurry. I haven't tried watching it again, not because I don't think it's interesting, but it feels like I have an unfair advantage learning about you when you're not there.”

"I’m here now," she says. "You want to watch it together?"

“Sure.”

She pulls out her phone from her pocket and pulls up a clip that shows her in a flattering light. "Here, this is me,” she shows him, as she leans against him so she can see it too. 

"Do you win this one?" he asks, enjoying the feel of her leaning back against his chest.

She chuckles. "You really think I'd show you one where I didn't?”

_Holy shit,_ he thought as he watched a sweaty Cara with her hair pulled back on the screen. The fight was only a handful of minutes long, but Din was amazed at how strong she was and how she just exuded energy and power. Din wasn’t sure what he was expecting but it wasn’t _that_. His brain was struggling to reconcile this kind, soft spoken, and funny woman holding his hand so gently with the strong bad-ass fighter who just kicked ass on the tiny screen.

"You’re amazing,” he tells, her when it’s over. “And you’re right, you didn’t get hit that many times."

“Well, I don’t win all of them, but let’s not watch those right now,” she jokes.

“You're a badass,” he states, and it almost makes her blush.

“A lot of it is showmanship—you know, game-face,” she explains. “You never know if you're going to win, but you always have to think that you are.”

“You seem more quiet in real life,” he observes, hoping she doesn’t find that insulting.

“I am,” she assures him. “It sounds boring, but I'd love to stay home with a good book and a warm blanket.”

“Me too,” he agrees.

“Is your couch big enough for two people?” she asks enticingly. “Maybe I could sit with you next time.”

This overwhelming feeling of longing hits him in the chest at her tempting offer. He could see it now, as real as she was sitting here.

He saw her bare feet curled up next to him on the couch; a blanket covering them as they read and watched the snow outside.

“I'd like that,” he tells her honestly, whether she was teasing or not. “It probably wouldn’t be all that quiet though,” he tells her. “There would be a five year-old doing a belly flop on the couch just as we got comfortable. He doesn't really _do_ 'quiet'. 

“That's okay. He can sit _with_ us.”

The room has cleared out after the lunch crowd, but they still find themselves sitting side by side, his arm draped over the back of her chair, and her head back on his shoulder as they try to digest. They feel warm and full and slightly sleepy, but it’s so nice, neither one complains.

“I have to be honest, she admits, “I was worried you might now show up today.”

"Really? Why?" Din asks, genuinely surprised she might think he’d stand her up. Cara turns her head slightly toward his face but doesn't lift her head from its resting place on his shoulder. She's not sure the building catching on fire could motivate her to move at this point. His arm had slipped forward off the back of her chair and rests against her back.

She laughs at herself. "I don’t know, my natural pessimist tendencies worried maybe you didn’t want to see me again in person. The phone is easy, but in person is…." she trails off, uncertain what she’s afraid of.

"--it's _just_ as easy," he interrupts her. It’s so easy with her. He smiles warmly at her to convince her he means it. "This is _easy_ ," he states, and gestures between them. "I was scared you might not show too, but I believed you would simply because you said you would. You have a very honest face.”

Cara grins at him again. “You’re such an optimist and a little bit of a dork, I love it.”

He couldn’t argue with either of those. “I’ll make an optimist out of you yet,” he tells her, “you’ll see.”

She laughs. “Good luck.”

The pan that was holding the pizza is totally empty and has been for some time, but they keep sitting close together anyway. “So, what's he getting for Christmas?" she asks Din, and he knows who she's talking about without question. 

He starts listing things off on his fingers. “A play kitchen with pretend food and a tool kit for kids power tools. He loves helping fix stuff, so I got one with a tool belt, screwdrivers, measuring tape, and a little hammer, you know?”

“He’ll love that,” she tells him.

“Uh, what else?” he thinks aloud. “There’s these scientist dolls he wanted--Jane Goodall and Albert Einstein-- so he’s getting those. Oh, and a pretty sweet bed.”

That actually got her to lean forward so she could look at him. “You got it?” she asks excitedly, looking at his face, which had a small smile just starting.

"Yep. Well, _Santa_ got it, but yeah. It's still in the box hiding in the back of my closet."

He couldn't tell her that he had worked extra hours to pay for it since he could never in good conscience use her beloved hundred-dollar bill she had given him for just that purpose. He'd had it framed to keep it safe and it also sat in the back of his closet, just waiting for the chance he could return it to her. He had meant to bring it today, but in all the nervousness and excitement, he'd forgotten. Maybe he could convince her to see him again. He thought their date had gone pretty well so far....

"You’ll send me a picture when it’s all put together?" she asks him, referring to the car bed.

He nods. "Yeah, of course, but I was hoping we could video chat Christmas morning, unless you’re busy."

"I won’t be," she states assuredly. She didn’t have any real family left to speak of and while her friends had offered her to come and spend it with them, it didn’t feel right to be an outsider at another family’s Christmas. She was planning on just staying home or maybe volunteering at the soup kitchen around dinnertime. The thought that Din had so casually invited her--not just invited her but expected her to be present for part of their morning--made her feel all warm in a way that had nothing to do with the cashmere sweater she was wearing.

"Can I send him something too?” she inquires. “He doesn’t have to know it’s from me. You can put whatever name tag on it you want."

"Whatever you get I’m sure he’ll love, Din tells her. “What were you thinking?"

She too, lists things off on her fingers. "Well, he loves your laptop, so maybe one of those tablets with educational games on it or some puzzles. One of those chunks of crumbly rock you dig out a dinosaur bone or shark tooth or something. Some paint since he’s always making art--washable of course.”

It took himself a second to realize she wasn’t kidding. He was expecting her to say a toy car or a box of slime. "Wow, that's.....that's a lot. You can get whatever you want, but don’t feel obligated to go over the top. He already likes you,” he tells her sweetly.

"And what about you?" she asks, trying to be coy, but she was all nerves waiting to see what he would say.

Din can’t help himself. "You want to get me some finger paint and puzzles? Sure.”

"Shut up,” she chides him, and smacks him lightly on the shoulder. “You know what I mean."

 _Honesty time._ "Yeah, I already like you too. I thought it was pretty clear." He squeezes her hand when he says it and they’re sitting so close that he playfully nudges her temple with his forehead and then the bridge of his nose. For a second, she thought he was going to kiss her when his face moved toward hers and her heart sped up, only to slow back down again when he nuzzled his nose against her hair at her temple.

 _Shit_ , Cara cursed silently.

She realized she _wanted_ him to kiss her. She refused to be disappointed though. This was the best afternoon she’d had in a long time and his company was just as warm and pleasant as she hoped It would be.

The hours fly by faster than either one them wanted. Din wished today could last forever. _How is it that time seems to stretch on forever when you want it to go quickly and it rushes by in a blur when you want to hold onto every second?_ She shifted so her back rested against his shoulder and chest and he wrapped his arms around her. Her hands might have raised just to adjust his arm to a comfortable position but when she entwined her fingers with his and he held on, she might admit it had been intentional. Her head leaned back against his shoulder and his head rested atop hers as they talked for the remainder of their time together--both glancing at the clock on the wall and hoping it would slow down. If she turned her head all the way to the side, she would have her face pressed against his neck. His aftershave smelled good and his beard was cut short yet still so soft. She only let herself indulge in the feeling _once_ , under the pretense of turning her head to watch their waiter walk by.

This was the longest lunch Din had ever had and it wasn't even close to long enough. He almost hoped seeing her again would put out a little of the flame he's been carrying for her, but now it was a raging inferno. Her laugh was a sound he didn't want to go without hearing ever again, and in person it was a thousand times better than over the phone. He could feel it crawl inside his chest and unfurl; taking up every inch of real estate and filling it with warmth. 

_Damn it. He only wanted to see her again even more now._

He wanted to see her, he wanted to touch her, and most frighteningly, he wanted to kiss her; so much, it was all his brain seemed to be able to focus on. His eyes had fallen on her lips more and more as the afternoon went by and he wasn't sure he was subtle enough about it fromthe grin that kept creeping up her lips. Her eyes kept falling to his mouth too.

They take several pictures together with each of their phones and the feel of her cheek pressed against his as they get close for the picture made his heart speed up. He wants to kiss her just once. _Is that moving too fast?_ he wonders _. Is kissing after six weeks considered fast when you felt so close to that person that it was hard to remember a time before you knew them?_

How could he go back to the phone after he'd had _this_?

Her warm hand in his…… her foot against his calf…..the smell of her hair as she rested her head back against his shoulder as they talked and joked as easily as they had over the phone…..

_Shit._ He hoped this short visit ( _date_ ) would satisfy his desire to see her and maybe even cool things down a little from where he'd built up this beautiful fantasy in his mind, but damned if it wasn’t the opposite. He hoped seeing her again might have given him some perspective to remind him she wasn't a dream, but a real person….. but shit….. she was even _more_ a dream now than she was when he closed his eyes at night. This was worse than before she came--it didn't die down at all--he wants her even more now. They had finished their food long ago but sat talking and laughing like they had known each other longer than 6 weeks and wrapped their arms around each other every day. Their laughter had turned to cackling; so loud at times the few other patrons glared at them, but Din couldn't give a flying fuck. She was _here_ and she was _smiling_ and she was _with him_ and she also seemed reluctant to let it end. 

They make it back to the airport with only a few minutes to spare before she really has to make her way through security or risk missing her flight. 

“It's snowing pretty bad,” she notices, “you don't think my flight will be delayed, do you?”

He laughs at her opinion of what ‘pretty bad’ snow is. “No. This is nothing,” he tells her, as he puts his car in park.

“Oh, I have one more thing for you,” he tells her as he grabs her bag from his trunk in the hourly parking garage where they parked so he could walk her back to the security checkpoint. Before they left the restaurant, she had asked him to pop the trunk so she could carefully rearrange her clothes to fit the flowers he had made her into the bag without bending them. He was glad she genuinely seemed to like them, but he still had one more thing for her. He wasn't trying to buy her affection, but he saw this ad online and it made him think of her. He reached for a little paper box tucked into a larger crate to keep it from getting dinged in the trunk and handed it to her. “I hope you can take it on the plane,” he tells her mysteriously, “it's soft, so you don't stab the person in the seat next to you.” She opens the box and inside is the most adorable little green succulent looking back at her. It was the kind that would drape down the side of the container, but it’s long vine-like beads had been curled up into the tiny rim of the pot to keep them from getting damaged or knocked loose with all the jostling from Chicago to Los Angeles.

She guesses she’ll start that garden after all, and she’ll send him a picture once she got it repotted into a nice pot.

She looks up into his dark eyes for what she knows is one of the last times. “Thank you. This is perfect. I love it.”

Din’s pleased she liked it. She'd get a new variety every month for a year if the succulent subscription service he signed up for made good on its promotion. He hoped the delivery and unboxing of a new green friend would make her smile once a month at least. He knew her address since Alex had sent her several pictures in the mail.

"Alex picked that one out,” he informs her. “Actually, he chose one with giant spines, but that was his second choice."

 _Of course, a kid would pick out one with giant spines,she thinks._ "Tell him it’s perfect."

"He's going to be so mad I got to see you today without him,” he tells her, as they walk across the crosswalk leading out of the parking deck and toward the terminal. Before they go inside, they take one more picture together in the snow before they head through the automatic doors to the airport. He kisses her forehead as she takes the picture, and he can see the little snowflakes in her hair and eyelashes this close to her.

She leans into it and it lasts far longer than could be considered innocent.

 _kiss her_ ….. the voice in his head tells him softly.

_kiss her you idiot_ , _she's about to leave._

He knows their time is over--he has to bring her back. Din walks her back to security checkpoint holding her hand and he rolls her bag to a stop beside him against a wall so they’re out of the way and not impeding the brisk walk of travelers hurrying by. He lowers the handle to make the top flat and places the little paper box on top so he can hold both her hands.

 _kiss her……_ the voice in his head is getting louder

 _No, I shouldn't rush it_ , he thinks. _It's important to be a gentleman. Show I respect her. I can control myself. She's more than just a pretty face and gorgeous slightly chapped lips. She's more than just beautiful on the surface._ The thought of her thinking he was only interested in her for her physical beauty was all it took to force him to get a grip. He'd never wanted to kiss someone as bad as he did in this very moment, but he cared about her and what she would think of him. 

“Well, I guess I have to go,” she says, and he doesn’t miss he sadness in her voice. It’s not clear which one of them moved first but their arms are around each other with zero shits about the public display of affection in the airport.

It’s not just a simple hug though, it’s an embrace--warm and full of promise. He doesn’t want to let her go and she clings to him too. He memorizes her smell and the feel of her in his arms; the feel of her hair against his face and the warm puff of air where she rests her face against his neck. He can even feel the flutter of her eyelashes and the melting snowflakes as she keeps her face against his collar. Talking to her every night had nothing on this.

“I uh, I guess you have to catch your flight,” he sympathizes. He had no clue how to say goodbye to her.

“Yeah, I guess I do.” Her eyes dart down to his mouth but doesn't make a move to close the gap between their faces.

_kiss her…….she wants you to,_ his brain tells him again.

He doesn’t move and neither does she.

_kiss her!_ …….it’s almost deafening now.

She waits a long moment, for what he’s not sure, but eventually gives his hand a last squeeze as she turns to walk away.

She only makes it a few steps before he can't help it. “Cara!” he calls out, and she stops and turns to face him. He jogs a few steps to meet her.

“I uhh….I just wanted to. Can I….?” He looks at her lips and she follows the movement of his eyes.

“Can you what? Stare at my lips?” she asks, and lets a little grin start at the corner of her mouth.

“Are you teasing me?” he asks, at the light he sees in her eyes.

She takes pity on him. “I don’t know, are you going to kiss me, or do I have to kiss you?”

The sly look on her face and the lip she has between her teeth are too much for his willpower that was all but destroyed when he laid eyes on the woman he’s wanted to see for the last 6 weeks--the woman he's talked to everyday and shared his life with; the woman he found himself falling for hard.

“I thought you’d never ask.” He kisses her warmly on the lips and the pull between them was finally satisfied for a brief moment as their mouths moved perfectly together. His hands rose to the sides of her face and felt her hair under his fingers as he held her face gently. Cara only had a single hand free, but she raised her hand to his neck and held him against her. His hair between her fingers felt amazing as her grip slid down from his face to his neck to hold him close and prolong the kiss she had wanted all afternoon. They break away and he sees her lips, pink and moist and swollen, and knows he must look like a love struck idiot with his hair sticking up at all angles where she mussed it but he can’t begin to care. She’s so beautiful after being kissed….

She sounds pretty proud of herself when she next speaks. “You were really going to let me get on that plane without kissing me?”

“I thought I could be respectful, but I wanted to kiss you so bad. I hope you don't think “I'm too forward.”

“ _This_ is how forward I think you are,” she tells him, and she pulls him down to her lips again.

He pulls back after their lips are thoroughly kissed, and he has the dopiest look on his face. “Sooo, just the _right_ level for forward?” he asks.

She laughs at his cheeky attitude. “Shut up and kiss me again, you idiot.”

He'd love to but he knows his own limitations. “If I kiss you again, I won’t be able to let you get through security….”

She can work with that. “I’ll just kiss you instead then.”

She leans up and kisses him and he knows she can feel him smiling under her lips because he can feel her smiling under his. Her soft kisses aren’t especially deep or passionate, but he’d never felt something so sensual before. She kisses his lips gently three or four times before the intercom states the time and they have to break away for real this time.

"I'm so glad I got to see you today," he says as sincerely as he possibly could. She had brought a light to his life from across the country and it was positively blinding up close. "Really, I’m glad you came."

The tone of her voices matches his in sincerity. “Me too, thank you for lunch.”

He doesn't want to let her go. He's clearly stalling. “Thank you for coming with me.”

"Bye, Din," she says sadly, as she finally lets go of his hand.

"Bye Cara."

“Call me to let me know you got there safe?” he says, as she starts taking a few steps backwards toward the entrance to the security line.

“I will. I’ll text you later tonight when I get to the hotel in New York if it's not too late, okay?” 

He tries to convince himself he definitely won't worry about her until he gets her text. "I’ll keep my phone next to the bed. Don’t worry if it’s late."

She rounds the corner to make her way into the snaking line, double checking she has her ID ready to grab, and lets out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding as she saw his face disappear behind the wall. That was it--the visit was over. That had been the day they'd been looking forward to for a month and a half. She hoped his interest in her didn’t fizzle or disappear after they saw each other again. She really felt something for him. She was scared to call it _love_ , but she knew that’s what it was turning into. It didn't matter how many times she kept denying it--that damn word and the feeling behind it kept creeping into her mind. She liked him when she first met him, _something unusual enough for her_ , but now she had to admit it was more than liking someone. It wasn't _like_ that kept her awake at night or filled her with happiness when she woke up and saw her phone blinking from across the room. It wasn’t _like_ that made her feel open and free and more herself than she had in such a long time. It wasn't _like_ that she felt thrumming in her body and warming her blood when they kissed and embraced just a few minutes ago.

Damn. This wasn't supposed to happen. This would be so much easier if she didn't love him. 

Her agent had teased her, "you couldn't have picked someone easier to fall in love with?" but the truth was, there was no one easier to fall in love with than Din. She couldn't even help it, and now she had to go to work and then go back home without him. _Damnit. This wasn't supposed to happen._

Din stands there for several more minutes, unsure if he wants to leave or linger like some love struck fool. If he leaves it means the day is really over. It’s physically painful to let her walk away from him for the second time, but today was a gift; and at the risk of sounding pathetic, he was grateful for the few hours he got to be with her. It was just as real and easy and as instant of a connection as it had been last time they saw each other, but now they had almost two months of quiet and intimate nighttime chats to give them a real foundation. 

They had actually planned this. It wasn’t chance this time--it was something they both looked forward to for weeks, while getting to know each other in the meantime. Cara waves as she gets in line and until the line moves and she’s out of site. He stays for a moment more hoping to catch a glimpse of her again as the line snakes around but he feels pathetic. She’s gone.

He feels lonelier now than before she even arrived. She lived in California, basically half a continent away, but having her only a hundred feet away was even more torture. He hoped he made a good impression today. He felt like an idiot most of the time he tried to impress her, but she laughed and touched his arm and they held hands like a pair of idiot teenagers. And that kiss…… _several_ kisses actually….. he probably had the dopiest look on his face right now and he couldn't care less. Everyone in the whole terminal could see his ridiculous smile for all he cared. Cara had kissed him.

All his worry had been for nothing--today had been the best day he could have imagined. She was the best thing that had happened to him in years and to know she was real, _this thing was real_, made him feel a glimmer of hope maybe there could be something more.

His phone chimes--it’s Cara.

He reads her text and smiles, knowing they’re only fifty feet apart still.

**_Is it pathetic that I miss you already?_ **

His face heats up at knowing she’s thinking the same thing he is. He grins at his phone just as genuinely as he does during their nighttime chats. He can't respond fast enough. **_Nope. I miss you already too._**

**_Thank you for the date_** _,_ she tells him again.

 ** _The pleasure was all mine_** _,_ he reminds her.

**_Call you later?_ **

**_Ok. I can’t wait._ **

**_:)_ **

**_< 3_ **

………………………………………………………………….


	3. A Day on the Town

One week later--Two days before Christmas.

They'd picked up right where they left off when she had gotten back to L.A. from her trip to the East coast but there was a stronger undertone of something warm and flirty that was brand new and thrilling. He lets her know he got the presents she sent in the mail, but it was hard to find hiding places for that many boxes. He ended up having to hide some in his trunk.

Later, looking at the pictures they had taken together during her visit, he sees the happiness not just on her face, but on his. In the one where he kissed her forehead as a last-minute desperate attempt to impart affection, it’s clear how content and relaxed she looks with his arm wrapped around her. He misses her already.

He sends her all the pictures he took, but the one outside the airport with the snow in her hair is his favorite. She has her arms wrapped around him, squeezing him tight, and they’re smiling at the camera. The next one is off center, but it’s her looking at him after she thinks the shutter already closed. The way she looked at him made him feel like he was the best thing she'd ever seen…..that emotion in her eyes was real--and it was the same way he looked at her.

………………………………………………..

The end of January

“I had such a long day, but I can’t sleep, Din. I need your help.”

“Is it really that hard to fall asleep,” he asks her, innocently, but she has other ideas.

He can hear the smile in her voice. “So _very_ hard.”

 _God, he must be really tired_ , he thinks. He’s finding it impossible to keep his mind out of the gutter right now with the lilt in her voice and her teasing tone. There's no way she doesn't know what she sounds like saying words like that.

She sends him a picture of her bare legs against the backdrop of her white bedsheets. It’s from her bare thighs down to her ankles but they're tucked up beside her and it both looks demure and incredibly erotic at the same time. The caption reads **_it's so hot here, I even had to take off my pants, see?_**

“You’re playing with fire,” he warns her, but it only seems to serve to bolster her confidence.

“Nice choice of words, Din. I’m so hot just hearing your voice. I wish you were here,” she tells him softly.

“If I was there, I'd put my arms around you. I’m sorry your day sucked.” It's clear she's feeling amorous, but he worries he'll just sound like an idiot if he tries to follow along.

“Would you kiss me?” she asked. When he didn’t immediately answer, she elaborated. “Do you remember, like in the airport?” _Gods, how could he ever forget--the feel of her lips, her smell, her taste, and the sound of pleasure she’d made when his tongue met hers had graced his dreams every night._

“Yes….” He means to make it sound casual, but it comes out from deep in his traitorous throat. Their sweet kiss had turned passionate so quickly, it had made his head spin.

“Would you kiss me like that in bed if you were here with me?” she purrs, knowing she's got him.

“Now, _I’m_ the one never going to sleep,” he tells her, as he feels suddenly warm as all the blood starts heading south. Thinking of her mouth under his as she lays underneath him in bed, was too much.

“Well, since you're not sleeping, what _would_ you do if I was there right now?” she teases him.

“Isn’t ‘ _what are you wearing_?’ a better question for phone sex?”

The way he says it so academically, makes her laugh so hard he can’t help but smile too. It thankfully cools him off just the tiniest bit before he fears he'll embarrass himself. Her laughter is all playfulness though, and the warm teasing behind it doesn't cool him off that much at all as she continues, “If I had known that’s what we were doing, I’d have worn lacier panties.”

_Ok, he’s definitely not feeling anything other than hot now at the word ‘panties’._

He has to distract her before this gets any steamier and he finds himself getting into it and sounding like he's never done this before.

“And if that's what we were doing, I’d wear better pajama pants that don’t have little polar bears on them.”

She almost snorts at the image, and the sound is so ridiculous he can’t help but laugh too. “Don’t make me laugh,” she scolds him gently. “I’m trying to get all hot over here.”

He can easily top that. “I could imagine you in a parka and still get hot.….tell me how you want me to kiss you. Your lips?” At the happiness and desire in her voice because of him, he thinks maybe this playful phone sex thing isn't so intimidating after all.

"Lips? That's a good place to start, sure...."

………………………………………………

It's the first week of February when she texts him in the middle of the day while he's at work to tell him she has another trip scheduled for the East coast. She tells him it'll be in March in Philadelphia, but she can book a layover though Chicago if he's free. 

He'd never scrambled so fast to type a response and send it before she thinks there's even a second of hesitation. 

**_Yes, of crse Im freep_**. Din sent it so fast he didn't even see how bad it was until after and scrambles to fix the message into something readable.

**_stupid typos. yes, I'm free :). I'd love to see you. How long can you leave the airport this time?_ **

****

Cara texts him back.

**_I'll call you tonight to discuss. My client just walked in._ **

He was sure he had a sappy smile on his face the rest of the day but none of his coworkers seemed to know why he was especially clumsy the rest of his shift as his mind drifted elsewhere; particularly, a beautiful laugh, soft kisses after lunch, and a gorgeous pair of bare legs against white sheets.

………………

Alex goes down to sleep, so Cara and Din continue their nightly phone call in the privacy of their beds so they can discuss the options for another visit and what layover might work. "So, there's one for 2 hours and one for 12 hours?” she tells him. “I'd like the second one so we're not so rushed, but do you think you can put up with me for that long?"

_12 hours? He'd get her to himself for 12 hours?_

“Hmmm. I'll try to suffer through,” he says with heavy sarcasm, but it’s clear how thrilled he is. “That's amazing.” 

“There's not a lot of flights out of Chicago in March so it works out.”

“That's because of chance of a whiteout,” he explains. “Philly might actually be worse. I just hope you don't get stuck in Pennsylvania.”

“March, then?” she confirms. “I'll book it right now if you really want me to come.”

“I can't wait to see you. I'll plan a whole day for us.”

“I can't wait.”

“Me too,” he adds on quietly. "I miss you." _That was new………_

“I miss you too.”

…………………………………………………

March

It was remarkable and amazing how much he and Cara had grown closer in the last four months.

Being apart was torture but they made the best of it, talking often--maybe too often, and sharing as much of their lives as they could. There wasn’t much they didn’t know about each other now and it felt warm, _like coming home_ , despite not being able to hold her or feel her lips under his after she came in from the cold.

He imagines what it would be like if she didn’t live in L.A.. Would Alex like her as much in real life as he did on the phone? He wishes they lived closer, but he was grateful their paths crossed and he was allowed this chance to get close to her even if it meant loving her from afar.

 _Wait_ ….. _loving_? he pondered, in genuine confusion.

Is _that_ was this was?

He loved her sure, but was he falling _in love_ with her? The better question was ‘ _did she feel the same way?_ ’

He wanted to ask where she saw this going without making her feel weighed down by expectations or a timeline. Did she really see a future with him like he saw when he looked at her?

This was fun and exciting and thrilling, but it was also the best thing in his life aside from his son and he didn’t want to mess it up.

 _Is it better to be casual?_ he thinks. Would she think he was just out for a good time--interested just in her body or her company, her pretty face--if he tried to keep things fun and easy? He was unbelievably attracted to her for sure, but it was so much more than that he often forgot what she looked like up close.

Or was it better to be serious and risk scaring her away with a declaration of commitment? She might run for the hills if she thought this was a fun long-distance fling and he said he had fallen in love with her. He didn’t want to pressure her or give her an ultimatum, but he wanted _more_ and he wanted to _give_ her more in return. He wanted to move forward but he wasn't really sure what direction _'forward_ ' was or if it was the direction she also wanted to head.

It all came down to this—he had no idea what he was doing. How could be make her feel valued and adored; worshipped and loved, without making her feel tied down or stifled? He thought of the even give and take of their time spent together on the phone and remembered she was planning to come see him again. Focusing on that fact gave him some comfort he wanted the same things she did. She did keep coming to see him though despite it not being easy to schedule. _That had to mean something, right?_

Their nighttime chats were the highlight of his day and she frequently said the same thing, completely unprompted. They talked almost every second of the day they weren’t at work and even a time or two on the clock. Like a pair of teenagers, it seemed like they could talk for hours about nothing and they never ran out of things to say to one another and the conversation never lulled. The only exception was at night when one of them would fall asleep on the phone. Cara listened to him breathe, calm and even, and closed her eyes and pretended she was hearing it next to her in bed. She imagined his face sharing her pillow and that she could feel the warm puffs of air from his open mouth as he slept next to her.

Her apartment had never seemed as lonely as the nights she wished he was there beside her. Besides wanting him on top of her and underneath her which she passed off as simple hormones from attraction, just the thought of tucking against his chest with his arm wrapped around her made her chest ache with something else entirely. What she wouldn’t give to feel him or to smell his aftershave again; to feel his lips against her forehead, her mouth, her neck; to spend a lazy Saturday morning listening to the rain or staying up all night to see the sun rise and sleep the morning away together under the blankets. _Did he ever think of those things too?_ she wondered.

When they teased each other, she could feel the heat in his voice, but he never made the first move or made her feel he was just interested in her body. Luckily, the few times they’d gotten worked up over the phone assured her sure they were compatible intimately as well. The first time they had awkward yet sweet phone sex it had broken a dam and they were insatiable after that. Their innocent and warm joking had turned steamy and exciting with promise. They wanted each other and finally weren’t afraid to voice it, given how far they’d come and how naturally it progressed. She would have taken him to bed a long time ago if they could actually _share_ her bed (or even her State), but the distance made them take things painstakingly slow and she wondered if maybe they weren’t the better for it in the long run. They simply couldn’t rush even if their bodies wanted to, so they took their time and enjoyed getting to really know each other while physical intimacy bubbled on the back-burner.

Thursday March 10 

The embrace and kisses they share in the airport don’t have any hesitation behind them this time and they snuggle together like lovebirds in the backseat of the cab they take to get downtown. The way he kissed her so full of passion and longing and want made her entire trip worth it.

Despite the snow flurries outside, the air just got twenty degrees hotter for some reason as they step out of the cab and into each other’s arms again.

“I have the whole day planned,” he tells her proudly, “but tell me if you want to do something different.”

“What I want is _you_ ,” she says, as her warm lips find his neck under his collar, “but maybe you can take my mind off how I want to rip your clothes off in a public space by telling me about this day you have planned for us.”

“I think I need to take off my jacket first and cool down," he jokes, at how quickly her words had affected him. At least there was no denying they were attracted to each other. 

She kisses the side of his cheek and loves the feel of his short beard against her lips and the smell of his aftershave. He kisses her lips, soft and sweet, and their noses are cold as they move back in for several more kisses.

“I'm really glad you're here,” he tells her sweetly.

“Me too.”

Her mind momentarily forgot how badly she wants to jump his bones when Din pulled out his phone to show her the map of the walking trail they’d take to get to the city center and she sees a photo of them show up on the lock screen. She had that picture on her phone too, but it was the wallpaper image instead. On the schedule for today was the park, the planetarium, the museum, the botanical garden greenhouse, the giant Bean, and the waterfront. Din had really put a lot of thought into this.

They made their way through the park hand in hand and laughed at some of the truly bizarre art installations while marveling at the miraculous ones. They ran inside the museum to regain feeling in their finger and toes in the cold morning air but ended up spending hours walking around and talking while looking at art. 

They make their way to the giant Bean and each take a handful of pictures of the two of them in front of its shiny reflective surface. They make out underneath it like horny teenagers and his hands find their way into the front of her long jacket when she moans against his mouth. The belt that holds it together falls open to grant him better access and she’s glad she didn’t wear something with more structure. His hands sneaking around her waist as they kiss and disappearing under the fabric makes the handsy move seem even more bold and daring than it actually is. They take their time meandering around with nowhere to be and no rush; looking every bit the part of two lovers out for a casual day in the park on a walk—something they might do every day. 

Early in the afternoon, they show up to the planetarium and present their tickets to the usher to get into the show. The good seats in the middle were all taken, but they didn’t mind at all as they sat in the last row and snuck kisses through the entire show of light and sound penetrating the darkness of the auditorium. He knew she loved space and the night sky from their talks, and she was really touched he chose this as something to share with her. They had shared many a night talking about the astronomy and the existential questions that present themselves when you try to find your place in the enormity of the universe. She rested her head against his shoulder the entire time the lights were out and the stars were twinkling above them. Din didn't know when they'd get a real night together under the stars, so this was the next best thing. A warm night on a blanket would have been his first choice, but she seemed to love this almost as much. The narrators voice came over the speaker and they watched together as the ceiling transformed into thousands of points of light and changed to show other celestial objects through the "journey through space". Her hand touched his thigh through the material of his jeans, and it felt so good Din was glad the auditorium still plunged in darkness or it might have gotten embarrassing.

Mid-afternoon found them both hungry, so they grabbed some street food along the waterfront and slowly made their way to the greenhouse which was having a special desert plant and orchid show with a small interior room specifically for tropical plants. Cara felt more in love with him than ever when she realized every stop and activity he had planned stemmed from a conversation that had in the dead of night. At the time, she wasn’t even sure he was paying attention to the things that intrigued or fascinated her, but he seemed to remember everything; and not only that, but really loved sharing these things with her. They stepped out of the snow into the 90% humidity glass enclosure and the change in climate hit them right in the face and they laughed at the almost literal wall of heat in the middle of a snow storm. The walkway snaked around the grounds and there were many alcoves and corners with orchids hanging for them to explore. They looked around and when there wasn't anyone behind them, she reached out and grabbed his ass playfully. He took it as a challenge when he saw the path they were following was deserted and he swatted her behind. It quickly became more of a game of grab-ass than a serious walk through the orchid display--they simply couldn’t keep their hands off each other. It took every bit of willpower she had not to pull him into a janitor’s closet the more he teased and touched her playfully.

The wind and the snow whipping around them seemed to have come out of nowhere when they headed back outside to spend the rest of the day by the water. It was cold, but not freezing like it as in the morning and they didn't mind having to stay huddled together on the park bench for warmth. The idiot had even taken off his jacket and placed it down on the seat so her pants wouldn’t get wet from the melting snow. By afternoon, it had warmed up slightly, and it was actually a nice day to spend outside enjoying a slow day of nothing by the water. 

As the day went on and the afternoon was approaching dusk, the attraction they felt and the magnetic force pulling them together was getting harder and harder to ignore. Touches became caresses, caresses became loving touches, and loving touches became heavier strokes and exploration fueled by mutual desire. Kisses were less innocent and lovely, and grew more hungry and heavy—laced with something just out of reach.

It's still relatively warm for a Chicago afternoon in March but the park clears out a lot when the snow starts to come down in a blanket and the two lovers are so lost in each other, they barely even notice. She had laughed at something he said, and he grabbed her face gently and kissed her, trying to infuse every bit of affection and yes, _love_ , he had for her. He’d kissed her cheeks when they took pictures and he snuck kisses on her lips every chance he could get, but this kiss was different. He cupped her face in both of his hands and her hands rose to his neck as their mouths moved against one another. Her tongue was almost blazingly hot against his in his mouth. It was a real kiss that screamed for more. He let go of her face and instead moved his hands to her lower back to pull her body more firmly against his and shivered as she moaned at the feeling it produced. They were desperate to be closer and it was getting to a breaking point they didn’t care if they were in a less trafficked area of the park or not.

"This has been the best day," she tells him when they break apart for air and look out into the park while still wrapped together. “I never get to see snow like this,” she says in wonder, as the snow swirls around the trees. “It's breathtaking, I can’t get enough of its beauty.”

He had the same thought about her when he looked at her beautiful face, enjoying a day he had put together for her. Din smiled at her and her obliviousness to his admiration of her beauty. The snow was boring and cold—the very opposite of her.

The day they had was finally coming to a close—there was only an hour left until he had to get her back for her flight.

“This is going to sound super lame,” he starts off, as they move closer to some park benches to have a better view of the water, “but I have to ask anyway. We're dating _right_?” He's sure to keep looking straight ahead and not at her because he'd lose his nerve if he looked at her sweet face when he asked. 

“Yes, I think so,” she says simply.

"Is it too forward to call you my girlfriend?" he asks next, trying not to appear to blindingly happy at the fact they are actually dating.

"That’s not forward," she tells him, amused at his hesitance to overstep. "I'd like that."

"This is exclusive to me, just so you know. I'm not interested in anyone else." He thinks it goes without saying, but he doesn’t want her to doubt for even a moment there could ever be anyone other than her.

Her response is short, but it says everything. "Me too."

He smiles and his hair ruffles in the wind. This day couldn’t have possibly gone any better. She can’t help but run her fingers through his unruly hair as she turns the new word over in her head and likes how it sounds. _Boyfriend.....she thought it sounded sweet and a little bit dorky, like Din. It was perfect._

They move closer to the water near the tree line so less eyes are on them and they can have a last sliver of privacy before they have to say goodbye in public. They stand under one of the large trees to shield themselves both from the falling snow and prying eyes so they could at least pretend to have a few minutes of solitude in the middle of the park. Din takes out his phone and takes a few last pictures in their last hour together. She takes a few too, but the more they kiss and snuggle up for the camera the more worked up she gets. She drops her phone into one of her jacket pockets and pulls him against her into another heated kiss so passionate it makes them forget they’re under a tree in a park. His entire body is finally pressed against hers.

Their semi-public venue doesn’t stop his body reacting to hers though and she moans when she feels the evidence of his growing arousal, unmistakable against her hip. Her body is calling to his and he can't help but answer. She moves her leg to straddle his thigh and grinds back against him until their hands are in each other clothes and they're both glad their pants are harder to get off or they might get into trouble. 

“How much time is left?” she all but pants against him, as his hands brush against her breasts under her coat. His hands pull back slightly but she pushes her chest forward to chase the feeling of his hands on her. “I wish we could go somewhere more private.”

“Me too,” he says, just as heated.

“I half hoped you would have booked a hotel for the afternoon……”

Din almost chokes on his own spit.

“No, of course not! Oh my gods, I would never be that presumptuous.”

_That's sweet_ , she thinks, but she was almost a little disappointed. She wanted him so badly she could hardly breathe but he either seemed less interested or had way more self-control than she did. Either way, she wasn't getting lucky today. She had been so sure he wanted her too; the way he touched her and kissed her and seemed to ache for her......

He must have seen the disappointment she tried to hide on her face. 

“You look upset. Did I do something wrong?”

“I'm not upset,” she tries to assure him, but he’s unsure if he’s mis stepped in some way.

“Was I _supposed_ to get a hotel?” he asks her. “Are you offended I didn't try to....you know...?”

She feels sleazy just at the though she’s making him feel self-conscious about not jumping into bed with her. Of course, he’s better than that, she just wanted him so bad it was affecting her perspective. “I’m not offended. I just thought you that you really ....." she hesitates, as she thinks of how to say what she wants to say without showing what an insecure mess she is at times. "I thought that you really.....I don't know……that you really wanted to,” she tells him. “On the phone it sounded like to you couldn't wait to be together….like _that_ , but you've been so respectful and sweet.”

He tried to read between the lines and put together what’s behind her strange reaction to him not being a creep and assuming they’d go back to a hotel today. “Cara, you don't think I'm not ....” he pauses, because it sounds so ridiculous just saying it out loud _. She can’t possibly think he doesn’t want her more than anything_. “You _know_ I'm insanely attracted to you, right?"

He seemed sincere, but she had a moment of insecurity and it was harder to chase away than she thought. "Sooo, that means you _are_ interested, then?" she asks, trying to sort out the mixed signals. “This is you being chivalrous, _not_ disinterested?”

He can’t believe she has any doubt. He doesn’t think he’s been subtle at all how enamored he is. Maybe he needs to say it plainly just once. “Cara, you're all I can think about--all I can dream about too. This is definitely my failed attempt at chivalry and demonstrating an other-worldly sense of self control." She laughs as he says it close to her ear and she gets goosebumps.

“I want you so badly, Cara. Please believe me. I just want to do this right. I don't want to mess up and scare you away. You're really important to me." She seems to believe him from the soft look on her face, so he continues. "You really _are_ all I think about. You fill up every thought, and I can guarantee those thoughts are not all entirely innocent either.”

She laughs at that.

“You're important to me too, Din, but I’d be lying if I said my thoughts were purely chaste right now.” His hands rested on the small of her back and tightened slightly as her words registered.

“Me too,” he says, relieved they were on the same page.

They're against a tree to break the wind and she pulls him forward towards her, so her back is against the cool bark. One of his knees finds itself between her legs and they rub against each other, relishing in the feeling of their hips finally touching like this. At feeling her willing and wanting, he temporarily forgets his self-control and lets himself lose himself in the feeling he’s desperately chasing. His hips rocking against her produces the most pleasant sensation he can’t even begin to fight, and she moans hotly against his neck when she feels him hard against her.

"Do you believe me yet?" he quips when it’s obvious how much he wants her.

Cold hands on his warm neck pull him down for another kiss and her mouth is warm against his though their noses are cold. Her hands trail down his chest before reaching around his waist to grab playfully at his backside. He leans more fully against her and subtly grinds against her and she pushes her breasts against his chest when she pushes back against him.

“Touch me again, I'm almost convinced,” she tells him. His hands, finally no longer cool, sneak inside her jacket and sweater, and his fingers make their way up her warm stomach and under the edge of her bra, making her gasp and move her tongue against his more firmly. At her encouraging sounds, he runs hand up over the cup of her bra and back down the curves of her breasts as he maps the softness and shape with his hands until they're both beyond worked up.

The elderly lady on a nearby park bench gave them a glare when Cara let out an especially loud moan of satisfaction and Din feels himself blush at knowing he drew that sound from her

“You know, at the risk of hearing you say, 'I told you so,' I wish I had gotten that room right about now,” he says, as he buries his face in her neck. “I don't think watching two people feeling each other up in the park is what that old woman came here for."

“Who knows,” she says cheekily. “Maybe that's EXACTLY what she came here hoping to see. We wouldn't want to disappoint her, would we?”

“I'm starting to think being chivalrous is overrated especially when you touch me like that,” he tells her as her hands make their way down his chest. 

“Don't you dare apologize for being a good man. I loved every part of today, I just want you want to touch you with less eyes and less clothes involved.”

That makes him chuckle. “If there were any less clothes, I could never manage to hold myself back from you. You're like a siren, but I'm trying really hard here to be a consummate gentleman until we have a whole night together to make love unhurried and at our own pace without watching the clock.”

“You're such a gentlemen, and I love that,” she says honestly, “but I'm definitely not feeling especially restrained.”

“At the moment, I'm not either,” he laughs. “Gods you feel so good.” It only took a handful of her breast and her thighs against his, to make him suddenly forget his good intentions. All he could think of right now was what she would look like in bed; her hair everywhere and their clothes forgotten all over the floor.

She seemed to have the same idea. “I want you. Maybe next time you could show me the view of the city from one of those high-level hotels. You know, if you want….”

“I do _want_ ,” he tells her quickly, “and I like your plan. There's a lot to see from up there. The cherry blossom trees are blooming in the Spring, but I'm not sure 12 hours would be enough though. Do you think you could stay a whole day?”

The thought of not seeing her for another handful of months was physically painful especially how desperate they both were for the next step in their relationship to finally happen. Knowing they both wanted the same thing and the sudden awareness of how perfectly they fit together was torture.

“I hope long before Spring,” she says. " And I'll see what I can do about maybe a whole day next time, so we're not so rushed.""

She waits until her hands are warm and inches them under shirt. She feels up his warm belly and delights as his abdominal muscles tense and jump under her hands.

Din’s breath catches in his throat as he tries to convey to her what she does to him. “You have no clue how hot you are...or how hot you make me.” 

She flushes at his compliment. “Can I call you tonight when I get to my hotel? If you're still this hot maybe I can help....”

“I can imagine _exactly_ how you'll 'help',” he tells her. “I'll make sure Alex in bed before you call.” 

She laughs at how much she’s looking forward to it now.

“Shut up and kiss me, _boyfriend_. It’s time to go.”

The old lady on the park bench had a friend beside her now and now they were both giving them a disapproving glare but neither one of them cared--they were together and they didn't want to waste a second caring what others thought. They moved to the other side of the tree until they absolutely had to get a cab or risk her being late.

Saying goodbye to her at the airport is even harder than the last time; a feat he thought impossible before their bodies had pressed together and her laughter had filled his memories of today. A whole day with her had opened his eyes to what it would be like if they got to spend entire days together all the time..... _Grabbing lunch, walking in the park, making out under the trees, laughing at her when she was scared by a pigeon that landed on her shoe....._

He could picture getting to surprise her at her job with breakfast or coffee and riding home together for dinner at the end of a long day. He loved every aspect of their relationship, but he knew the distance was going to be hard and only get harder the closer they became. He never expected to fall in love with her. 

They kissed goodbye and held each other until they had no time left.

“I can’t wait to see you again.”

"I can't either."

…………………………………………

She flies out Thursday night after she and Din finally manage to tear themselves away from each other so she can go through security and sprint to her gate. She calls him when she gets to her hotel room in Philly close to midnight. She missed his voice already and the feel of his arms around her.

“Gods, Din. I’m so tired," she gripes when she finally flops down on the hotel bed after stripping out of her airplane clothes. She was about to throw on a nightdress, but the sheets feel so good against her skin she decides against it. 

“Me too," he says, clearly exhausted too. "That kid is going to drive me into an early grave.”

“I wish you were here with me,” she says into the phone, and he can hear the longing in her voice that matches his own.

He’s still high off their kisses and heated touches from earlier--he can still taste her and feel her softness under his hands if he closes his eyes. Hearing her voice over the phone is almost as good as hearing it against his neck and in his ear only hours prior. He must still have her coursing through his veins; he has no other reason for his boldness for what he says next.

“In Philadelphia or in your bed?” he teases her.

“Both,” she says, and he can hear her rustling the bedsheets. “I can’t stop thinking about the way you felt pressed against me in the park.”

“Me too. Even through two levels of jackets you felt incredible.”

Her voice is sultry and filled with want when she speaks again. “I wish I could touch you right now.”

“Cara….” he says low and warningly but it goes straight to her belly, setting a fire.

She doesn't seem deterred at all by his low warning. He might have just made her more into it. “I like your voice, Din--the way you say name. Tell me about what you wish I was wearing if you were here……….”

He doesn’t have to think about that one for even a second. “Something with thin straps.” Ever since their first video chat when she had been wearing thin straps and he caught a glimpse of her shoulders he’d fantasized about what they would feel like under his lips. He must be really tired because this dangerous talk seemed like a great idea.

Apparently so did she. “You’re sliding the straps off now, aren’t you?”

“Yes.” He closed his eyes and saw it perfectly.

“Then what?” she asked in a breathy voice that did nothing to disguise how much she was enjoying this.

“I’d kiss your shoulders.”

“And down my chest?” she suggests next, though it sounded an awful lot like begging. “Please say that’s what you’d do next. The shirts silky, it just slides off with the straps pulled down.” Her hand reaches up to touch herself after she pretended to slide the straps down to follow the conversation. She caresses herself before giving her bare breast a gentle squeeze and her thumb passes over her nipple as she listens to his voice.

“Yes. I’d kiss you and touch you wherever you want.” He could imagine it; his face in her cleavage, kissing her nipples and her hands tangled tightly in his hair. When he closes his eyes, he’s cupping as much of her soft breasts in his hands as he can in his palms as she arches her back.

Cara lets out a soft sound of frustration. “My panties….they’re not lacy, but they’re so soft. You want to feel?”

 _Like he could ever say no an offer like that._ “Yes. I’m feeling them right now.”

He couldn’t help it as his hand had a mind of its own as he closed his eyes and lost himself in her voice.

She’s breathing heavy when it’s her turn to talk. “Would you take them off if I begged you to? They’re so wet, I can’t stand it anymore.”

“Yes…..fuck, Cara.” He’s breathing so heavy--too turned on to be embarrassed at the sounds she was making. She was into this too, he could tell from her voice.

She apparently wants to give him a heart attack--that’s the only explanation for her next words. “I’m touching myself imagining they’re your hands. They feel so good.” The way her breath catches makes what little blood remains in his brain head South. She’s touching herself pretending he’s there.

He lets out a helpless sound as he imagines it.

“Are you touching yourself too?” she asks, but her voice is so breathless he can barely make it out.

“Yes. Thinking about you,” he manages to reply as his hand is quickly turning into hers.

“Tell me,” she asks him, “would you tear them away so I was naked underneath you or would you slide them slowly down my legs to make me--”

“Slowly,” he interrupts her, “but I wouldn’t use my hands. I’d pull them down with my teeth. I want to taste you.”

She wasn’t expecting that.

Fuck…..

It was her turn, but she was halfway there already. “And then? I want to feel your beard everywhere. I love how it felt on my neck.”

“You’ll feel it on the inside of your thighs once I slide your panties off.”

The breathy gasping sound she breathed into the phone made him lightheaded.

“What would you do then……?” she gasps as she tries to remember to breathe and how to form words. “Din….I’m so close……please.”

Friday March 11

Cara attends her event Friday after lunch, but she’s admittedly distracted. Every time she sees a man with a beard, she feels her face get warm from Din’s words the night before in that low and sexy voice. Thinks she's going to get stuck in Philly if she waits to catch her Saturday morning flight out, so she gets switched to the last seat on the last red eye flight out Friday night instead. She only has a one-hour layover in Chicago, _not long enough to see Din_ , but just being in the same city as him feels nice. _She’s becoming such a sappy idiot_ , she thinks, and scolds herself accordingly. 

Her plane touches down Saturday morning just as the sun is coming up but everything is shut down due to the thick blanket of snow that came down overnight, All flights out of Chicago have been cancelled--it could be more than 48 hours before they allows planes to take off again. She calls Din to tell him about the change in plans.

"We'll, I made it out of Philly on the last flight before the airport shut down."

"That's great," he says. He sounds relieved.

"Buuuut, I just landed in Chicago and they said all flights are cancelled for the next 48 hours at least. Guess I'm stuck _here_ instead of _there_. I'm about to go take a taxi to a hotel. If the snow wasn't so bad, I'd ask if you and Alex wanted to come and visit me.”

“Are you kidding?” he asks, as he looks out his window at the near white-out conditions. "You are not getting in a taxi in this weather."

she scoffs at how he makes it sound so simple. "How do you propose I get to a hotel then?"

Everything came to him instantly. He had a plan--a stoke of genius--he just had to ask his son if it was okay. "Wait for like two minutes and I'll call you back," he tells her and quickly hangs up.

"Okay," she says awkwardly to her phone that's already ended the call. 

It's almost exactly two minutes when her phone rings and Din's picture pops up and she answers. His voice comes through before she can even say hello.

"Hey, you get a taxi yet?" he asks, in a hurry.

"No. You asked me to wait so I did. I'm not sure why though, the line is getting ridiculously long."

"I'm coming to get you," he tells her.

"I thought you said the roads are dangerous." 

"I drive in it all the time. I can be there in 30 minutes. You can stay with us.”

She wasn't expecting that at all. "What, really?" She thought he simply meant he'd drive her to a hotel. She didn't think he'd ask her to stay with them.

"I can't stand the thought of you staying in the terminal or an unfamiliar hotel for two full days. I'll come get you and you can stay with us until flights are getting off the ground again. I'll sleep on the couch--you can have my bed."

She didn't want to impose on his family time. "I won't be putting you out? You're sure?"

"Positive," he replies. There's no doubt in his mind.

"And Alex is okay with this?” she asks again, just to double check. “I don't want to confuse him or frighten him with a stranger staying in his house.”

"Are you kidding me?” he asks with a disbelieving laugh, “his whole face lit up just now when I asked him to clean his room so you could come over. You're no stranger, Cara. He's bouncing off the walls, really.” It was true she wanted to meet his son at some point, but she didn't want to make him uncomfortable if he turned out not to like her as much in person as on the phone. On the other hand, she and Din would get at least two full lazy days together, snowed in.

"Okay. If you really think he’s okay with it." If his son was fine with it, she’d come to a decision. She was going to stay with him for the next two days. 

His voice sounds excited as he hears her agree. "Great, I'll see you soon."

"I'll be outside baggage claim. I’ll look for your car."

"See you soon."

"Drive safe, don't rush,” she tells him, before the call ends.

........................................................


	4. Unplanned Lazy Days Feel Like Home

The entire time she waited to see his car pull up she was spent in anticipation. Despite the cold air that came in whenever the automatic doors opened, her face felt pleasantly warm and her stomach was filled with butterflies. She had just seen him less than 2 days ago, but she couldn’t get him off her mind.

They got back to Din's apartment and Alex was indeed thrilled to see her which made her relax slightly. Thrilled may have been a slight understatement--he all but barreled into her as soon as the door opened. She'd been worried about meeting him in person, but it was all unwarranted. All day Saturday, Cara and Din spent with Alex in and around the house and it was a sweet distraction from each other. It as easy to put their focus into putting the kid's needs first. They tried to ignore the something that was crackling in the air between them--the tension so thick they could cut it with a knife. The desire they felt and the magnetic pull was palpable, and if it wasn’t for the cute kid she’s sure they would have fallen into bed already if the way they looked at each other was a clue. The snow that was coming down was particularly wet—the kind Din said you don’t want to play in. Their apartment wasn’t a large space by any means, but it felt cozy instead of small. Alex was having a field day. He shows her his toys, gets her to play with him for hours, they read books together, and he shows her his prized bed. 

"Santa got it for me,” he tells her excitedly.

"Wow! You must have been really good."

“Daddy says I have to clean my room to keep it, but I never do. I cleaned it for you though,” he tells her proudly, and her heart melts a little bit.

Dinner is mostly the kid talking Cara’s ear off about anything and everything, thrilled to have her actually here instead of over the phone. Din can hardly get a word in edgewise, but he seems to love it--both Alex being so taken with her and also having a short break from Alex’s intense and singular focus. Cara spoils him and dotes on him and never seems to push hm away even though she must be exhausted.

They all watch a movie on the couch with snacks and Alex sits between Din and Cara for the first twenty minutes before he not-so-sneakily squirms his way into her lap to rest his sleepy head against her chest. "Daddy, she's much softer than you." Din finds it both hilarious and mortifying--parenting in one sentence. 

"Is that right?" Din asks, from behind his hand, that's partially covering his face in embarrassment. 

Alex sees nothing wrong with his simple observation and answers him honestly. "Yeah, your tummy is softer, but her chest is much softer," and he snuggles down for the rest of the movie.

"Sorry about him," Din whispers to Cara over Alex's head, where he's nodding off, after getting the rare treat to stay up until 9.

Cara couldn't look more pleased. "The kid speaks the truth. Gotta love a child's honesty. I am pretty soft."

"So soft!" the kid chimes in with a yawn, clearly listening to their conversation at the same time as the movie. “Here, feel daddy,” and he's grabbing Din’s hand and placing it innocently on her chest where his head just was. "Isn't she soft?"

The teasing smirk on Cara's lips is all it takes for Din to wish the kid was asleep in bed _now_ \--maybe twenty minutes ago. As awesome of a wingman as his kid is apparently, he'd rather spend the rest of the night with her alone. "Well......am I soft?" she asks Din, with a look that sets him on fire.

"Hey, it's getting late, kiddo” he announces, exactly one second after the movie ends, even before the credits start rolling. “Go get ready for a bath and then lights out."

"I’m too tired for a bath daddy," he says, yawning the whole time.

"Okay, we can skip it this one time. Go hop in bed and I’ll come tuck you in and kiss you goodnight."

"Can Cara come too?" Alex asks, in a way that makes it sound non-negotiable.

He tries to give Cara a break. She’s been magnificent all afternoon and he doesn't want to use up all her generosity and patience in one night. "I'm sure she's pretty tired buddy. Come, on, maybe tomorrow."

"It's no problem," she chimes in from behind him, "I’ll be there, just let me find some pajamas first."

"I'll find you something right now and then come back," he tells her. Din leads her to his room where he rummages through a drawer and lays out a white soft cotton shirt and the ridiculous flannel pants with little polar bears on them.

They’re only alone for ten seconds in his room but her hands move to his hips and his to hers completely of their own volition. She leans up to his ear.

"What are the chances he’s already asleep? I want you so bad."

He groans at hearing she wants the same thing he does. "Me too. But maybe the super sexy polar bears will help us keep our hands off each other for a few more minutes until he’s good and asleep."

"You think so?" she challenges him, as she starts to slide her pants down her legs to get undressed and changed into the borrowed pajamas.

"You are a temptress,” he tells her, but he can’t tear his yes away from the exposed skin of her legs.

She laughs. “You can turn around at any time if it’s too tempting, you know.” He knows he should look away, but he can't bring himself to. Tonight might be the night--he wants her to feel the desire and want that’s consuming him and to know she's worshiped and adored and loved at the same time. Her pants hit the ground and his hands are reaching for her bare hips, when--

"Daddy! Hurry up!" He’s interrupted by the kids call for him just as his fingertips feel the heat of her thighs calling to him.

"Go on," she tells him with a playful shove toward the door. "I'll still be here when you get back. Actually, I'll be in the living room so we can stay up and talk for a while.”

 _Talking.....talking is safe_ , he thinks. They talk all the time. His insecurities about making a fool of himself in bed the minute he feels her underneath him were temporarily forgotten.

Once he’s put the boy down, he returns to the living room and sees her come out in the pajamas and can’t help but laugh. “You look ridiculous…” he tells her with a huge smile that takes the edge off.

“Oh good. Then I look like I feel,” she jokes back. “You know, I usually just sleep in panties, but I’m wearing this getup for you and your kid who’s probably going to sneak into bed with me at some point during the night.”

“Can’t say I blame him,” Din says honestly. “You _can_ lock the door though.”

She had thought of that. She takes a step into his waiting arms. "But then _you_ can’t sneak in either…. He lowers his face to kiss her before another loud bellow from Alex’s room makes them jump apart.

“Cara, you didn’t say goodnight!” she hears Alex call out from his room. She thought he might forget she had promised him a story, but he clearly remembered just fine.

It's Din's turn to be smug. “Your audience awaits.”

After she’s sure Alex is asleep after several songs and impromptu stories, she closes his door and comes to join Din on the couch where he’s waiting for her. He's made up his bed on the couch like he said he would—a perfect gentleman, despite his inability to keep his hands off of her. She sees the single pillow and sheets, and somehow the thought of sharing this uncomfortable surface with him seems a hundred times better than sharing a luxurious bed alone, with him 20 feet away in a different room. 

“Is he actually asleep?” he asks her in disbelief. It’s usually much more of a struggle.

“Yeah, out like a light,” she tells him proudly. “Can I sleep with you out here for a while?”

“It’s barely big enough for one person," he states, but can see the benefits of such a small shared space. 

“I guess we’ll have to cuddle pretty close then,” she tells him full of snark, as if that isn’t the whole point. They’re practically on top of each other when they lie down on the couch. They get comfortable and he wraps his arms around her and pulls the banket over them both when she turns in his arms to kiss him. Sleepy, sweet kisses turn into something heavier, more filled with want, as their tongues find one another, and she shifts against him as she feels him hardening under stomach. He initially pulled his hips back, uncertain if his body’s response was too forward or inappropriate but she answered by rolling her hips against his and he felt her smile against his lips at the sensation. The first moan spills from her mouth into his and he’s a goner. "We have to be quiet," is the only thought he manages to verbalize since the rest of his brain is overtaken by the feel of her against him.

Her hand slips in to his loose sleep pants and he curses a colorful string of words and she takes him in her hand.

"Let me help you with that?" she offers seductively, making sure it sounded like a question. He grunts some form of agreement as the meaning behind her words sinks in.

“Tell me if you want me to stop or I do something you don’t like,” she mouths against his neck, as she slides down his body before her head disappears under the blanket. He tried to keep an eye open at the closed door that led to the kid’s bedroom, but it was impossible as he felt her hand reaches into his boxers to free him and suddenly he was engulfed in the wet heat of her mouth. The room was quiet given the late hour, and all he heard were the erotic sounds of her enjoyment muffled by the blanket and his own harsh and ragged breathing. His hand cups the side of her face so he can run his fingers through her hair, and it encourages her to quicken the pace. Every time she draws a particularly loud moan out of him he can’t dampen down by biting on his lip, his eyes fly to the closed door before fluttering closed again. When he could no longer fight off the pleasure of her mouth, a strangled gasping sound left his throat and filled the quiet room as he felt every inch of his body tense before release.

She crawls back up the length of his body before tucking her head under his chin. He keeps looking at the door over her head but he’s breathing so hard it’s making her head rise and fall with the effort. His paranoia at being caught, not quite winning out over his pleasure and euphoria, makes her start laughing. Her laughing makes _him_ laugh at how risky that had been in the open living room, and before they know it, they're both trying to keep quiet while snickering. She buries her face in his chest to muffle her laugh and his hand comes up to hold the back of her head as he tries to bury his own mirth in her hair. 

"Why do I feel like a couple of teenagers that just fooled around on the couch while your parents are in the next room?" she asks, and it makes her chuckle all over again. He laughs and nudges her to roll over so he wraps his arms around her and tucks his face, still panting, into the back of her neck.

"The comparison is pretty spot on," he says. They spoon together on the couch where they fall asleep, but she turns to face him at some point in the night. Every knee and elbow ends up waking them both up throughout the night but neither seem to mind. Every time they're jostled awake, her mouth finds his in the dark so they can kiss leisurely until they can drift off back to sleep. He’s woken up several times by her lips as they pass softly over his, nudging him awake gently until he opens his mouth and deepens it as he realizes it’s not just another Cara dream, but reality. He kisses her every time he's woken up and they spend more of the night making out than actually sleeping. The novelty of laying together and waking up off and on in each other's arms is something they can't get enough of. Din knows when the sun comes up, they'll have to separate before his sneaky kid finds them wrapped together, but he can't bring himself to even suggest she go back to the bed. He'll make sure he wakes up first, so they don't get caught.

Sunday morning-

Despite his sleepy and satisfied mumbled assurance that he would wake her, Cara wakes up first and leaves Din on the couch to give the appearance of propriety when Alex wakes, and also so she can make them breakfast. Din wakes up on the couch with the most pleasant dream still clinging to his subconscious, before he realizes it wasn't a dream, but a pleasant memory of the night before. As soon as he wakes up, his senses are overtaken by the smell of cooking which makes him sit straight up in alarm. Waking up to the smell of baking and it’s such a foreign concept he panics, thinking Alex got into the kitchen and was playing with the oven and only moments away from burning the place down to the ground. He jumps up, scrambling off the couch, until he sees Cara in the kitchen with flour all in her hair and Alex siting on the counter, 'helping'. "Good morning," she greets him, with a pink color on her cheeks and her hair pulled back in a vain attempt to keep more flour from dusting it, but it's already too late. 

"You made breakfast?" he asks in amazement, as he takes in their smiling faces and the state of the kitchen. 

"Blueberry muffins," his boy beams at him. He looked like he was having the time of his life.

"He did most of the work," she tells him. "He did all the mixing, I just helped crack the eggs and with the oven part."

Din helped Alex clean off the table so they could make room for the breakfast Cara had outdone herself by creating. There was flour everywhere and it took many wet paper towels to clean it all up so they could sit down at the breakfast table. She had raided his fridge, because a full breakfast awaited him: bacon, the muffins, and omelets with cheese, onions, mushrooms, and tomatoes. 

Cara didn't baby Alex like Din found himself doing sometimes, and set him the important task of pouring orange juice and setting the table. Where he almost never did chores for Din, he couldn't seem to help Cara fast enough. He soaked up her praise at his excellent job.

The three of them sit down to breakfast and Din has to pinch himself to remember she’s really here with them. It’s not a dream. He picked her up yesterday and they had days together to look forward to. This glimpse into what a domestic life with her could look like takes him by surprise: the pair of them working together to make breakfast in the morning might not have been especially exciting or sexy but it made him fall in love with her even more. Alex taking to her so quickly and she to him made his heart feel impossible bigger.

Alex has brought all of his favorite toys to the table to 'eat breakfast’ too and she’s thrilled that some of the things she sent him made the cut to be his favorites. They were from Santa, but still…..there’s almost no room for the plates with all the toys and stuffed animals.

She sounds impressed when she tells him, "you know, you got quite a lot of toys, kid."

  
"Yep, my dad tells me that too. He say's I'm lucky."

"You sure are," she tells him, before taking a sip of her juice. "Did you get everything you wanted for Christmas? I'm surprised Santa had any toys left after he got to you."

He actually looks a little forlorn as he thinks about it before answering her. "There was one thing I wanted, but I didn’t get."

"Oh yeah?" she asks quizzically, genuinely interested. It was snowing too hard to run to a store, but maybe she could order it online. "What’s that?"

"A baby brother," he says, with a genuine pout on his face and disappointment in his voice. Din spits out his orange juice halfway across the table and lunges for the paper towels to clean it up as he starts coughing.

"Rosie said daddies can’t do it, but I don’t get it. Could _you_ give me one?"

Instead of startling at his request, Cara casually takes a bite of bacon and starts chewing as she goes about reasoning with him to see where he's coming from. "What would you do with a baby brother anyway?"

"I’d play with him and show him my toys," he says simply, as if he's thought this through before.

"And You wouldn't mind sharing your toys?" she asks, impressed with his selflessness for someone his age.

"He could have all of them and I'd even let him see my bed if he wanted."

"Well, Din. You heard the kid. You going to make that happen or what?" she asks as she grabs another paper towel to clean up the orange juice as she feels a blush on her cheeks at the heat in his eyes.

The look he gives her over the kitchen table is something that'll stick with her for quite some time. 

"I'll see what I can do."

Later Sunday afternoon. "You guys almost ready for lunch?" she calls out, as the grilled cheese sandwiches she made are cut and on plates already. When Alex keeps playing with his toys and doesn't come over to the table, she walks over to him. She raises her eyebrows when she sees a muffin wrapper on the floor beside his pile of toys. 

"Hey, kid,” she says to get his attention as she kneels beside him on the floor. “Did you leave any muffins for me to have one at lunch? I'm so hungry.” She knows he snuck the last one since his face still had crumbs on it. His eyes get big and he knows he's caught. "Sorry Cara, they were just so good." She ruffles his hair. “That's okay, I guess I’ll just have to make do,” she tells him. “I don’t see any muffins, but I _do_ see a cuddle muffin," and before he can react, she scoops him up and pretends to eat him.

"Chomp chomp chomp."

He laughs and squirms to geta away, but she chases after him, all the while making the most ridiculous big and exaggerated chomping motions with her arms, followed by blowing a loud raspberry on his tummy when she captures him again. He squeals and Din shakes his head affectionately at the sight of her winding up his son, chasing him around the small space. She makes _'om nom nomming'_ noises where she pretends to take bites out of his ticklish sides and he's laughing so hard he can barely breathe. When she thinks he’s had too much, she backs off but he’s already climbing up her, begging her again, "chomp me again like I’m a muffin, Cara. Chomp me again."

Sunday night, Alex drops like a sack of potatoes after dinner and Din carries him to his bed. When he sure he’s comfortable and snug he turns back to the door to the living room but sees Cara watching him instead from the doorway to his bedroom. He reaches out and takes her hand and takes note of how fast his heart is racing. She leads him back to his room where she’s already folded back the comforter and smiles at him. She closes the door behind him and stands next to the bed. “You going to kiss me good night, too?” she asks him teasingly, as she runs her hands down his neck to his chest. “Tuck me in maybe?”

“Your mouth is going to get you in trouble one day," he tells her, teasing her right back as his hands pull her close to him, feeling the softness of her body in nightclothes against his.

“Either shut me up or show me, Djarin,” she taunts him, daring him to make the first move. He doesn’t need to be told twice and he certainly doesn’t need any encouragement. He kisses her. The only light in the darkened room is the moonlight coming in through the closed window blinds. The wind from the blizzard is whipping around the building and the sound of the raging storm outside only adds to the perfect storm of them finally coming together. Beside the wind, the only sound is their breathing and his pounding heartbeat that’s so loud by now he wouldn’t be surprised if she heard it too. She pulls him toward her as she sits on the edge of the bed and moves more toward the middle when he joins her. Her hands run up under the front of his shirt and when he offers no resistance, she pulls it over his head and tosses it aside. His mouth kisses down her neck and watches as she shrugs the straps of her shirt off her shoulders to give him better access. He kisses down her collarbones and over the tops of her breasts, nuzzling her cleavage, where the shirt has ridden down. She’s moaning and shifting against him in pleasure, and he cups her breasts before passing a thumb over her still covered nipple, hard under her shirt. When she lets out a moan that leaves no question about where this is going, he pulls himself off her to her disappointed protest. “Please don’t stop.” He smiles at her in the dark as he takes the three steps to the door to lock it before returning to where he was. “I won’t,” he whispers against her neck where his mouth is hot against her skin. “I just had to lock the door. Are you sure?”

The sound she makes might be the most erotic, desperate sound he’s ever heard and can’t believe it’s for him. “Yes. God yes, touch me,” she all but begs him; the time for shame and hesitation long since gone. He pulls down her shirt to expose her breasts and takes a nipple into his mouth as she cries out, only remembering at the very end to muffle it against the top of his dark hair. They work each other’s pants off and their remaining undergarments are lost without any flourish as they race to get their hands on each other.

She pulls him down for a kiss that’s messy and desperate and when she spreads her legs, he knows it’s an invitation he could never turn down as he climbs in between them. She’s not the only one’s who’s been eager for this it seems, and it makes her head reel. She’s so wet under his fingertips as he reaches between them and her strong legs wrap around him waist to get him where she wants him. They fit together so perfectly, like they were made for this.

The position is too perfect, and he almost slips inside her a second time from the lack of friction provided by her arousal, before she begs him, “I want you.”

He kisses her and rests his forehead against her before reality catches up with him; an amazing feat given the lack of blood in his brain. _Shit_. As much as he wanted this to happen at some point, he didn’t know she was coming to stay with them or that they’d amazingly end up in his bed. "I don't have anything," he tells her, hoping she’ll know what he means.

"Me neither, perfect bill of health," she says quickly, before pulling his mouth down to hers and searching out his tongue with her own _. Gods, she tastes so good._

He kisses her deeply and shifts against her instinctively to position himself, before almost forgetting the reason he hesitated to begin with.

He has to get some blood back in his brain. Maybe walking down to the drugstore in the snow to buy condoms would be a good idea after all, before he lost himself in her completely. He hadn't needed them in years and Cara's visit was truly a surprise. 

"I mean I don't have any protection,” he regretfully tells her. “It’s risky. Do you want to wait?"

She kisses him hard enough he almost forgets his own name and she chuckles at the goofy look of bliss on his face. "It’s not a risk if the worse that happens is we have a baby together a few months earlier than we thought.....” she tells him calmly. “If you’re really worried, I can run to the pharmacy tomorrow for an emergency contraceptive."

He’s reassured by her response and how it aligned with their previous discussions. "I’m not worried,” he assures her, “nothing would make me happier than starting a family together, I just don’t want you to regret this if it happens faster than we talked about."

"Regret THIS?" she asks him in disbelief as she touches his chest over his heart. " _Never._ There’s no way I'd ever regret this."

They’d talked extensively over the past months of what a family could look like, their shared desire for more children, and where the future could take them. It all sounded amazing. They knew this was the real deal, despite their geographical distance, and they were moving in the direction of talking about how marriage might work and how they could change their lives to live together in the next year. Despite their desperate need for each other in this moment, this wasn’t a decision they’d made lightly. A future with more children and a life where they could live together had frequently been on their minds. Fate had been good them so far, he was happy to let fate take over once more.

"We might not make a baby tonight, but we can practice," he reasons, teasing her, to let her know everything’s fine. "Nothing wrong with perfecting technique and all that."

She just wants to make absolutely sure. "And what if we _did_ have a baby a few months early?"

He looks into her eyes in the low light to make his thoughts known. “It would be a surprise, but the best kind of surprise.”

“Then kiss me,” she tells him.

He does.

The white bluish glow from the gray snow clouds makes what follows seem surreal. Slivery blue slivers of lights highlighted her naked body and he knew he’d never see that pale color of nighttime snow without thinking of her ever again. In her dark pupils he can see the moonlight from the gray snowy sky reflected back at him and it’s magical. It takes his breath away,

When they find their rhythm and the moments of gentle exploration and adjusting are gone, Din has to hold onto the headboard with one hand to keep it from banging into the wall and alerting not only his kid, but also the neighbors to their activities. He’s getting so close, but with one hand braced against the wood, the angle is too awkward so Cara takes over; raising her hands above her head to hold onto it to keep it from banging against the wall. With his hands free he can finally plant his hands onto the mattress and get a respectable pace going again. There’s hardly any light but he could still see her white-knuckled grip where she was holding on, not just to keep the sound from transferring through the wall, but to anchor herself so she could push back against him in time. Strangely, every time she gets close enough she can almost taste it and feels herself start to clench and tighten, he eases up.

She was getting frustrated by the second time but almost shaking by the third. “Don’t tease me. Please,” She begs him to stop drawing it out. “I’ve wanted this. I want you.”

He kisses up her sweaty neck. “I’m not doing it to tease you. I just don’t want it to be over, but it will be if I don’t slow down.” He couldn’t care less about the headboard at his point when he weaves his fingers with hers and pulls them down to the soft surface on the pillow beside her head. Holding her hands isn’t the best angle, but he loves feeling her strong grip and it slows things down so he can focus on getting her off slow and easy. He untangles his fingers and runs his hands down her thighs and calves to unwrap them from his waist and move her ankles over shoulders. He needed a second to collect himself, so he slowly ran his lips over her delicate ankles. To buy himself some more time, he kissed the arch of one foot and then the next, before running his hands worshipfully down her legs.

It’s only when he hears her let out a sound that sounded a lot like ‘ _please’_ does he starts moving, reaching over her shoulders, to brace his hands against the mattress near her head. She draws him draw into a kiss and the angle when he leans over her with her legs on his shoulders makes her eyes roll back in her head. The most obscene moan tears its way out of her throat at the new angle and he picks up the pace again when it’s clear it drives her wild. “Shhh,” he says against her lips as he kisses her deeply to muffle her moans. “We have to be quiet.”

He feels her body relax in his arms as she drifts off, but his mind is too full to sleep.

His first girlfriend after college has been more than ten years ago. He tries to think about her as little as possible, but the comparison with Cara almost made it humorous to remember that point in his life now. With _her_ sex was a weapon; love was the carrot dangling at the end of the string to get what she wanted. She manipulated him at every turn and loved it when he’d grovel for some transgression he didn’t remember committing. She even convinced him to get rid of his dog because he didn’t like her and jumped on her in excitement when she came over. She had cheated on him so many times and that had changed him—made him question himself and what he was lacking to be treated like that. What he learned from Omera was that love was painful; something you endured and suffered through--a painful obstacle course with no end in sight. It was a process of changing yourself to be what someone else wanted you to be.

Cara was nothing like that, he thought. She was breathtakingly beautiful, sure, but that wasn’t what stole his heart at the end of the day--she was kind and selfless. It was because of her he knew what love was, and not the kind of love he felt so easily for his son, but romantic love.

With Cara, love was gentle and giving and endless. It was trying to be a good man not to appease another person but just to see them smile; it was giving everything of yourself and getting everything in return without keeping score or exchanging IOUs. Cara’s love built him up and made him not only feel okay being himself, but somehow made him more ‘ _Din_ ’ than he ever remembered being. She loved everything that he worried was a flaw and finding her at this point in his life had been the biggest surprise he hadn't seen coming.

She changed him.

Brought him back.

Loved his son.

He was total goner. He wanted everything with her. He knew she'd been hurt before too....and he’d rather have one of his limbs removed than hurt her. He knew this was the real deal.

He felt her stir in the middle of the night, and as she pulled him on top of her, he felt her knees fall apart so he could ease into her without needing any words. The only words they spoke in the dead of night were kisses and moans as their bodies did all the talking. His arms are shaking by the end and she flips him over to ride him until they both can’t take any more pleasure and fall asleep in exhaustion once more.

Monday morning- the first thing Din senses when he wakes up is that he’s not alone. There’s a warm weight across his chest and dark hair splayed over his face. The sun is coming up by the time Din tears himself away from her to return to the couch so he’ll be there when Alex wakes up, but leaving Cara naked in his bed is like torture.

They have the entire day Monday, but Din knows that's the last full day they get, so he doesn't let a minute of it go to waste. He's never wished for another blizzard so hard in his life, but the weather says Tuesday will clear up and be sunny by midday. Checking her booking information, they are both sad to see her flight will take off Tuesday morning. Din makes her breakfast, before they spend the rest of the day playing in the snow with Alex's sled, walking around the neighborhood, and building a lopsided snowman in the park. The warm soup they have for lunch does nothing to fill the cold he feels at her imminent departure the next morning. They make dinner together and they all go up on the roof to light a small fire in the communal fire pit that they have all to themselves. Cara and Din cuddle under the blankets as Alex makes them all smores under close supervision. That night they make love like it could be the last time for months, but nothing about it was frantic—they were savoring every second, memorizing every touch, and relishing in the feel of each other.

It's only 6am Tuesday morning when they're all awake for goodbyes. Her flight is at 8:30 and she knows it's going to be even harder to say goodbye this time, so she wanted to make sure she was up early enough to allow for extra time. Din double checks the bathroom and his room to make sure she has all her things before he grabs his keys to drive her back to the airport. Alex cries as she's putting her suitcase next to the door in preparation to head out.

"I don't want you to go," he tells her pitifully. "You can stay here with us. Why can't you stay here? Who's going to chomp me? I'll keep my room clean, I promise."

It's breaking her heart how sad he is to see her leave and the tears in his eyes when he starts bargaining and reasoning with her all the reasons she should stay. He's squeezing her so tight around her middle and she lets her hand rest on his head before gently rubbing his back in what she hopes is a comfort to him. "Oh honey, I wish I could stay here, _I do_ , but I live somewhere else."

"You can live _here_ ," he insists, and she can feel his tears and runny nose soaking through her shirt.

She feels wetness on her own cheeks and turns away from the kid so she won’t upset him, but when she turns, it’s right into Din’s worried face. He doesn’t say anything as she discreetly wipes her face and he convinces Alex to stay with Rosie for the next hour, so Cara’s leaving won’t be even harder at the airport. Din will drive her there by himself. It’ll be hard enough with just them……the thought of the five-year-old crying and begging her not to go was not something she thought she could handle without giving in and missing her flight back home. How could she say no to that sweet face? She thought the few days here would just be a chance to spend some intimate quiet time alone with Din, but she had found him and his son to be a family that she desperately wanted to be a part of. She couldn’t ever remember being happy in the way she was the past 3 days and the pain she left leaving made her know what she felt for them was real. 

Din puts his hands on her shoulders so she knows he's there, and moves a hand up to cup her cheek. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean for him to upset you before you have to leave."

Her nose is runny and she swallows hard to keep her emotions under control. She doesn’t want this visit to end on a sad note. Every second they got to spend together has been nothing but happiness

"He didn't upset me," she tells him, but the evidence on her face and in her voice says otherwise as she looks down at her feet. Looking at Din will only make this worse. "I just enjoyed these past few days more than I thought I would. It's hard leaving, that's all."

"He loves you,” Din says, plain as day. He hesitates a moment before tilting her face up from the floor to make sure she's looking in his eyes. "I do too..........you........ you know that, right?" 

"Do you really?" she asks, still unsure how someone like Din could love someone like her so unconditionally. He showed her all the time, but hearing it made her feel like it was a fact and no longer something she just assumed.

"This isn’t the romantic first time I had planned to tell you, but I love you Cara, when can I see you again?"

“I don't know,” she says sadly. "I don’t have any business trips planned for the next six months, but we'll make it work.”

He nods and smiles a sweet smile that doesn’t quite make it to his eyes. He’s putting on a brave face for her, but the thought of not seeing her for six months breaks his heart.

"I love you too Din," she tells him. "It scares the hell out of me how strongly I feel for you, but I can’t pretend I don’t love you not after the most amazing five months that have changed my whole life. Every time I see you it feels like we belong together and leaving goes against every instinct I have."

"I know. I feel it too,” he tells her in return, “but I know your schedule isn’t something you can control. We'll see each other again soon, I'm sure of it. I don't want you to be sad."

She’s already come to a conclusion. "If I don't have a reason to travel, then you'll be the reason I fly here," she tells Din, almost like a vow.

He can't deny he's thrilled, but he still looks at her in disbelief. "You can't fly all the way here for me," he argues with her. "That’s hundreds of dollars for a ticket."

"Of course, I can," she insists, "for as long as you want me to."

It doesn't seem fair that she's always the one to make the effort, he thinks. "Maybe one day me and Alex could fly and see you,” he proposes. “He's never been out of Illinois before."

"That _would_ be quite an adventure," she agrees, thinking it's an excellent idea but knowing it's hard for him with his job too. "It’ll blow his mind if you ever get to do it--the ocean, the sand, the sun. You could stay with me."

"Maybe this time next year I could look in to relocating to California if you want me to and we could try living together. There's nothing that ties me to this city specifically. That would be an even bigger adventure." He holds his breath a little to see what she’ll say.

“Really? A year from now?” Why a year from now?” Her heart sped up, thinking a year was both forever from now and soon enough to make her excited at just the thought.

“Lots of stuff needs to happen between now and then,” he states. “If you want us there and we decide to live together it’ll take at least a few months to tie up all the loose ends here," he explains, "and it’ll give me a year to convince you to marry me.”

She laughs at him. "I don’t think you’ll need a whole year, but it’s always nice to have a goal; something to look forward to."

"I look forward to everything now,” he says seriously, referring to how much his outlook on life has changed because of her.

"I do too," she tells him honestly, surprised at how much she means it. "I never knew I could be such an optimist." 

It’s his turn to laugh. "That makes two of us."

She laughs too and it’s a much better sight than her tears.

"Let’s get you to the airport,” he says. “The faster you get there, the faster everything else can happen."

"I'm not sure that’s how it works, but the faster we get there, the faster I get to kiss you one more time,” she reasons.

"See? You’re a total optimist,” he laughs, as he closes his door behind them and locks it.

"Shut up. I can’t wait to see you again,” she says, as she takes on last look at his home that felt like hers the last few days.

"Soon, I swear."

.............some time later..............

The Christmas play on December 18th was exactly the caliber of theater production one could expect from 5 to 7-year-olds, but Din loved it anyway. 

He got in the receiving line to pick up Alex for Christmas/Winter break and shake the teacher’s hand, as was custom after the pageant.

He always hated this part, but he had to admit it wasn't so bad this year. The woman behind him kept leaning into him, but he didn't mind. 

"Hello Mr. Djarin, so good to see you again," the teacher, _Ms. Harlow if memory served_ , said kindly. "I remember you from the parent/teacher night."

He reaches out to shake her hand. Alex rushes forward and wraps his arms around Din's waist and squeezes--his painted black nose wiping off on Din's dark pants. "Daddy, did you see me?"

Cara steps forward to Alex's surprised face. She was beaming at pride in how well he memorized his lines. "How could we not kiddo, you were the best sheep I've ever seen." Some of the cotton balls they'd glued all over his shirt were falling off, but the effect was still the same. 

Din had told her to stay home--the swelling in her ankles was so bad and the ground was so slick he'd worried about her--but she told Alex she'd be there and she wouldn't break her promise. Alex let go of his dad’s waist to wrap himself around Cara's belly that was so round, her jacket couldn't even begin to close. "You came?” he asked, looking up at her. “You were here the whole time?"

"Of course, I came,” she told him. “I wasn't going to miss out on your big performance."

"I don't think we've met,” the other woman chimed in. “I'm Julia, Alex's teacher.”

"Yes, he talks about you all the time," Cara says, finally putting a face with the name. "He loves school."

"He's very bright" the teacher gushes, "such a sweet bo--"

"This is Cara," Alex butts in excitedly, before Cara can even introduce herself, “and this is my baby brother," he says, placing his open palms across her red Christmas sweater stretched across her swollen belly. The rose gold of her ring glints in the rainbow of colors from the strands of Christmas lights near the stage as she places her hands over Alex's smaller ones.

"Another boy?" Julia exclaims, "you'll definitely have your hands full."

That makes Cara laugh. They've had this conversation with several people before. "Actually, we're not finding out the sex, Alex is just sure it's a boy," she tells the other woman.

"It's my Christmas present," Alex says proudly, and so _loudly_ , the tips of Din's ears turn pink.

"Is that right?" the teacher asks, and several of the women behind them in line chuckle too. Cara's cheeks feel warm and Din laughs and scratches the back of his neck.

"Was that the plan Cara, a Christmas present?" he asks her, grinning like an idiot over the best present he's ever received. She looks to him and smiles like no one else is in the room. "Something like that.”

"Next time we'll have to try for Halloween...." he says, teasingly." I know how you love Halloween."

The teacher sees the two of them so lost in each other they hardly notice they're still in line or that people are waiting behind them. She tries to get their attention again, but their eyes are just on each other.

She clears her throat to try to get them back on track. They look like two starry eyes teenagers the way they gaze at each other. _Newlyweds probably,_ she thinks.

"So, Alex told me you're moving soon?" she inquires to make small talk, but also make sure he wasn't changing schools for the spring.

"Yeah," Din tells her, "but not until the school year is over. A lot's going to change soon, so we don't want to disrupt his routine any more than necessary."

Alex's face is pressed into her belly and Cara runs a hand over his head and through his hair. "Anything interesting going on in there?" she asks the curious kid plastered to her stomach.

"Yeah, he's moving, but not that much,” he answers, looking disappointed.

"There's no room left,” she explains. He's running out of space." 

The teacher chimes in. "I hope you don't take this the wrong way,” she says, “but you're a big as a house. When are you due?"

Both Din and Cara laugh. "Yesterday."

"If you go a few more days, this'll be a real Christmas baby," she says cheerily.

"I certainly hope not,” Cara argues. “Another 7 days...." she trailed off as she couldn't even imagine another day or two of this discomfort. "Believe me we've tried everything, _and I do mean everything,_ to get this baby to come out, but he seems pretty content to stay put for now."

Din's about ready to wrap it up and head home. "Well, we should let you go, it's good seeing you," he says to Julia. "Alex, tell your teacher you'll see her after the New Year."

"See you next year, Ms. Harlow!"

"Come on kiddo, let's get back to the car before the snow starts back up again," Din says as he takes his hand.

"Did you really think I was a good sheep?" Alex asks.

"The best sheep I've ever seen," she tells him emphatically, and Din nods strongly in agreement.

Cara takes Alex’s other hand, but Din's switches sides so he can put his arm around her. She snorts at his chivalrous gesture. "I'm not exactly graceful at the moment, though if I fall on the ice I'll fit in with the other walruses. You wouldn't even be able to pick me out of the herd.....flock..... whatever a group of walruses is...."

He laughs and shakes his head. "Of course I would. You're the most beautiful walrus I've ever seen." 

"Oh hush," she says. She'd like to tell him something else, but Alex is listening while pretending he's not.

"Actually," Din chimes in helpfully, "I think you'd make a much better narwhal."

She eyes him suspiciously. "Why's that?" she asks, afraid to know the answer if the knowing shit-eating smirk on his face is any indicator.

"Well, they're beautiful and majestic and ----"

He covers Alex’s ears for good measure when he whispers in her ear the last adjective he thought of.

“----and always horny.”

She smacks him gently when Alex isn't looking, and he laughs. She can’t believe this man she married. "Did you just make a dirty joke about a tusk?" she asks him in hilarious disbelief.

"It's not a tusk,” he argues, “it's more of a tooth."

"You're unbelievable," she laughs. "Fine a narwhal, then. When I fall, I'll look more like a whale on land anyway, so it fits."

He cautions her again, but it’s laced with mirth. “It's slippery out there, you better keep your arm around me, so you don't fall.” He’ll never grow tired of her holding on to him.

"You paid that ice to be there. I'm onto you."

"Maybe I did,” he teases her.

"I love you,” she tells him honestly, as they step out into the cold air.

He gives her his best scoundrel grin. "I know." The situation is just too perfect to pass up.

She gives him a fake incredulous look, trying to keep her smile from slipping through. "What do you mean _'I know_ ', who are you now, Han _kriffing_ Solo?"

He loves that they have the same taste in movies. It's reason number 9,357 he loves her. "I love you too," he tells her, and can't stop laughing. "Come on your worship, let's go home. I'll rub your feet."

"How about we try to jumpstart labor again,” she suggests, only slightly kidding. “You know what they say...."

"Let's get him to sleep and I'll see what I can do," he promises her.

"Take me home Din," she says, content with the life they've built together and how easy it is to go home together now. Home was where her family was.

"Let's go."

......................................

The wonderful and talented [Mandalorianess](https://mandalorianess.tumblr.com/) made these amazing images. Check out the rest of her beautiful edits!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all for reading.   
> I'd love it if you left a comment <3
> 
> Until next time. Something much shorter and with our idiots back in space :)


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